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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. press — to push
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. spring — the season
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. mine — for digging
  8. rest — what's left
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. rest — what's left
  11. press — newspapers
  12. rest — a break
  13. fall — the season
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. fork — in a road
  16. press — a publisher
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. spring — of water
  21. stem — to come from
  22. spring — a coil
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. fall — to drop

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