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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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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: pound · stem · mark · pop · lean · rash · patient · march

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rash — a series
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. lean — thin
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mark — a grade
  8. lean — to bend
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. march — the month
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. pound — a weight
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. march — the month
  19. pop — to visit
  20. pop — soda
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. stem — to come from
  23. march — music
  24. stem — a stem cell

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