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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 116 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. degree — temperature
  3. charge — electricity
  4. degree — from a university
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. degree — an amount
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bass — the fish
  9. press — a publisher
  10. charge — a price
  11. field — a subject
  12. bat — the animal
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. field — farmland
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. charge — in control
  18. field — for sport
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. bass — low music
  21. press — to push
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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