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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.

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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. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. court — of a king
  3. suit — to fit
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. cold — an illness
  6. current — happening now
  7. current — electric
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — a series
  10. cold — not warm
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of law
  13. fork — in a road
  14. current — of water
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. ground — a position
  18. suit — in cards
  19. ground — the earth
  20. ground — crushed
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. suit — clothes
  24. rash — hasty

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