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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cell · patient · season · kick · net · last · root · fan

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. season — in sport
  3. last — finally
  4. net — in sport
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. cell — a phone
  8. kick — in football
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. last — to go on
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — after costs
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. last — final
  17. root — the cause
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. season — of the year
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — in biology
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. root — 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