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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. object — an aim
  4. charge — electricity
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. spring — a coil
  8. chair — a leader
  9. spring — of water
  10. object — to protest
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. degree — temperature
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. land — to come down
  15. land — a country
  16. charge — a price
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. charge — in control
  19. object — a thing
  20. spring — the season
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — an amount
  24. land — ground

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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