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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. toast — bread
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. rash — a series
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. season — of the year
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. season — in sport
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. stem — to come from
  19. mine — for digging
  20. wound — an injury
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. rash — hasty
  24. fan — a supporter

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