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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. net — in sport
  3. staff — a stick
  4. staff — employees
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. net — after costs
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — the season
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. land — ground
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. fall — to drop
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. land — to come down
  21. staff — employees
  22. stem — to come from
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. land — a country

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