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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  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. cabinet — ministers
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. prune — to trim
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. field — a subject
  8. ball — a great time
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. stem — to come from
  13. ball — a dance
  14. chip — for betting
  15. field — farmland
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. mine — for digging
  19. prune — to trim
  20. field — for sport
  21. chip — to eat
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. stem — a stem cell
  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