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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 · kid · ground · bass · mug · stand · hand · stem

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — low music
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. stand — to bear
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. stem — to come from
  11. mug — a face
  12. ground — a position
  13. hand — in cards
  14. kid — to tease
  15. bass — the fish
  16. kid — child
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. mug — to rob
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. ground — crushed
  24. ground — the earth

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