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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  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 — calm and waiting
  2. sharp — clever
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. current — of water
  5. pit — a hole
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. cell — in biology
  10. current — happening now
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. capital — a city
  14. pit — in a race
  15. capital — money
  16. stem — to come from
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. rush — hurry
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. cell — a phone
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. current — electric
  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