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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: key · suit · patient · root · press · wind · court · rash

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. root — of a word
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. suit — to fit
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. key — in music
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — the most important part
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. wind — moving air
  12. root — of a plant
  13. wind — moving air
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. press — newspapers
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — of law
  18. rash — hasty
  19. press — a publisher
  20. root — the cause
  21. press — to push
  22. rash — a series
  23. suit — in cards
  24. suit — clothes

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