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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: chair · stem · snap · net · patient · ruler

  1. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. net — after costs
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. stem — to come from
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. net — in sport
  11. net — for catching
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. snap — to click
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. chair — a leader

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