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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. file — a tool
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. press — newspapers
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. stock — goods
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. rush — hurry
  13. stock — shares
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a line of people
  16. press — a publisher
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. press — to push
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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