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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. last — finally
  6. stem — to come from
  7. snap — to click
  8. charge — in control
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. charge — electricity
  11. pound — a weight
  12. charge — a price
  13. last — to go on
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. last — final
  18. bat — the animal
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. wake — a trail
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. pound — to hit hard

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