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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: rash · face · leaves · patient · bat · rush · club · content

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. face — to point toward
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. club — for dancing
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. rush — hurry
  12. content — happy
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. bat — the animal
  15. rash — a series
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. club — for golf
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. face — to confront
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. club — a group
  22. face — part of the head
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. patient — a sick person

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