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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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. race — humankind
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. stem — to come from
  7. dip — to sink
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. degree — temperature
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. net — in sport
  13. degree — from a university
  14. degree — an amount
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. race — a contest
  17. net — after costs
  18. net — for catching
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. race — the arms race
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. dip — to dunk

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