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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. rash — hasty
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. stock — goods
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. stock — shares
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. season — in sport
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. season — of the year
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. cell — a phone
  19. charge — in control
  20. charge — electricity
  21. perch — the fish
  22. charge — a price
  23. cell — in biology
  24. rash — a series

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