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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. roll — a cake
  3. land — to come down
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. stem — to come from
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. mate — to breed
  11. prune — to trim
  12. land — ground
  13. roll — a list
  14. mate — a partner
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. hand — help
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. mate — a friend
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. land — a country
  23. hand — in cards
  24. stem — of a plant

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