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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. net — after costs
  3. march — the month
  4. march — music
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. chair — a leader
  7. shower — to wash
  8. net — in sport
  9. stand — to bear
  10. net — for catching
  11. march — the month
  12. club — a group
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. shower — rain
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. club — for golf
  18. club — for dancing
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pop — soda
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — music
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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