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

Word bank: rule · pop · patient · cold · present · stick

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. rule — government
  5. present — the time now
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. pop — to visit
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. pop — music
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rule — a law
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. present — a gift
  17. pop — soda
  18. cold — an illness

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