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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: patient · fall · jam · mine · stand · net · ground · degree

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. stand — to bear
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. ground — crushed
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. ground — a position
  9. fall — to drop
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. fall — the season
  13. degree — an amount
  14. net — after costs
  15. degree — from a university
  16. ground — the earth
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. degree — temperature
  19. net — in sport
  20. fall — to drop
  21. net — for catching
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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