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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ruler · straw · temple · object · clip · cold · drill · patient

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. cold — not warm
  3. clip — to cut
  4. cold — an illness
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. object — an aim
  8. object — to protest
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. drill — the tool
  14. drill — a practice
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. drill — army training
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. object — a thing
  19. clip — a video
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. clip — for paper

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com