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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. rash — hasty
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. chair — a leader
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. rest — a break
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. field — for sport
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. field — a subject
  15. rest — what's left
  16. field — farmland
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. wake — a trail
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. capital — a city
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. rash — a series

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