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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. ball — a dance
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. spring — of water
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bass — low music
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. squash — the sport
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. kick — in football
  20. ball — a great time
  21. squash — to crush
  22. spring — a coil
  23. spring — the season
  24. bass — the fish

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