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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 120 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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. net — for catching
  3. net — after costs
  4. last — final
  5. charge — a price
  6. charge — electricity
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. net — in sport
  10. stock — goods
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. band — a ring
  13. stock — shares
  14. last — finally
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. last — to go on
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. chair — a leader
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. band — a music group
  23. charge — in control
  24. band — a rubber band

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