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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. stem — to come from
  5. last — finally
  6. charge — electricity
  7. net — in sport
  8. last — final
  9. bass — low music
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. board — a committee
  13. charge — in control
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. last — to go on
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bass — the fish
  20. net — for catching
  21. rash — a series
  22. net — after costs
  23. board — to get on
  24. charge — a price

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