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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: degree · bear · fall · net · stem · swing · press · patient

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. net — for catching
  3. degree — from a university
  4. stem — to come from
  5. fall — to drop
  6. press — a publisher
  7. bear — the animal
  8. degree — an amount
  9. net — in sport
  10. swing — to play on
  11. net — after costs
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. swing — in golf
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. degree — temperature
  17. swing — music
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. press — to push
  20. fall — the season
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bear — the animal
  23. press — newspapers
  24. stem — 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