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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 120 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: mug · fork · scale · mine · trunk · net · rash · patient

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. mug — a cup
  6. rash — a series
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. net — for catching
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. scale — in music
  15. mug — to rob
  16. rash — hasty
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. net — in sport
  20. scale — size or range
  21. mine — for digging
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. net — after costs
  24. fork — in a road

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