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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. net — after costs
  6. wind — moving air
  7. net — for catching
  8. stem — to come from
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. rush — hurry
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. fork — in a road
  17. net — in sport
  18. wind — to turn a key

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