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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. stem — to come from
  7. capital — a city
  8. capital — money
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. mine — for digging
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. craft — a skill
  13. court — of law
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. staff — employees
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. staff — employees
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. rush — hurry
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. court — of a king
  23. craft — boats
  24. staff — a stick

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