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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. net — in sport
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. wind — moving air
  5. charge — electricity
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. object — a thing
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. wind — moving air
  12. kick — in football
  13. charge — in control
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. object — to protest
  16. net — after costs
  17. pass — a permit
  18. net — for catching
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. charge — a price
  22. object — an aim
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. rush — to hurry

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