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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. rush — hurry
  3. capital — money
  4. net — after costs
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bulb — for light
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. drill — army training
  9. rock — music
  10. net — for catching
  11. rock — a stone
  12. capital — a city
  13. net — in sport
  14. mate — to breed
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. drill — a practice
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. drill — the tool
  19. mate — a friend
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. mate — a partner
  23. bulb — for light
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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