ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

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.

Make a worksheet

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
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

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: rash · file · net · press · patient · rush · degree · row

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. press — newspapers
  5. press — a publisher
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. file — a line of people
  8. net — for catching
  9. press — to push
  10. file — a tool
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. degree — an amount
  14. row — to paddle
  15. file — a document
  16. net — in sport
  17. rash — hasty
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. rash — a series
  20. row — a line
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. net — after costs
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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