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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. mate — a friend
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wind — moving air
  6. cell — in biology
  7. mate — to breed
  8. cell — a phone
  9. kick — in football
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. season — in sport
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. court — of a king
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. mate — a partner
  20. season — of the year
  21. court — of law
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. court — for sport

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