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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 · cell · staff · court · stock · fork · pound · lie

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  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. lie — an untruth
  2. cell — in biology
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. lie — to recline
  5. court — for sport
  6. stock — goods
  7. cell — a phone
  8. staff — employees
  9. stock — shares
  10. fork — in a road
  11. court — of law
  12. staff — a stick
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. court — of a king
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. pound — a weight
  22. staff — employees
  23. fork — to eat with
  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