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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cell · patient · mate · squash · stock · bore · land · racket

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. mate — a partner
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. squash — to crush
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. bore — to drill
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. squash — the sport
  11. mate — to breed
  12. land — to come down
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bore — to tire
  15. land — a country
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — goods
  18. mate — a friend
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. cell — a phone
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. cell — in biology

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