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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: last · patient · saw · straw · bat · cabinet · present · mine

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. present — the time now
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. mine — for digging
  10. present — there
  11. last — to go on
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. last — finally
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. saw — the tool
  16. saw — the tool
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. present — a gift
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. last — final
  24. patient — a sick person

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