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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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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: pop · rush · straw · stem · file · pitch · patient · spring

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. stem — to come from
  5. spring — of water
  6. file — a line of people
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. file — a tool
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pop — to visit
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. rush — hurry
  17. spring — the season
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. file — a document
  20. pop — music
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. spring — a coil
  23. pitch — completely
  24. straw — dry grass

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