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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ground · stem · pitcher · march · cell · patient

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. ground — the earth
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. stem — to come from
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. ground — crushed
  10. cell — in biology
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. march — the month
  13. ground — a position
  14. march — music
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. march — the month

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