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

Word bank: patient · game · fall · band · perch · rule

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — the fish
  4. rule — government
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. band — a music group
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. game — a match
  9. rule — a law
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. game — wild animals
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. band — a ring
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. rule — to rule out

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