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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 120 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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. court — of a king
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. key — the most important part
  6. wind — moving air
  7. land — a country
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stock — goods
  12. court — of law
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. wake — a trail
  15. stock — shares
  16. land — to come down
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. land — ground
  21. court — for sport
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. key — in music
  24. key — for a lock

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