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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: key · press · rash · stock · cell · kick · patient · rest

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. key — the most important part
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. rest — what's left
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. key — for a lock
  9. kick — in football
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. press — a publisher
  13. press — newspapers
  14. key — in music
  15. rest — a break
  16. press — to push
  17. stock — shares
  18. stock — goods
  19. rash — a series
  20. cell — a phone
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. cell — in biology
  23. rest — what's left
  24. stock — a soup base

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