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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: rush · kid · mate · patient · net · temple · ruler · ground

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. kid — to tease
  4. rush — hurry
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. net — for catching
  7. net — after costs
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. mate — a friend
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. mate — a partner
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. ground — crushed
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. ground — a position
  19. net — in sport
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. kid — child
  24. rush — a thrill

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