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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: rest · stem · pitch · sharp · mouse · patient · cold · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. rest — a break
  4. stem — to come from
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. cold — an illness
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pitch — completely
  15. cold — not warm
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. rest — what's left
  20. sharp — clever
  21. season — in sport
  22. season — of the year
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. stem — of a plant

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