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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: wake · charge · patient · file · straw · stem · present · cabinet

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. present — a gift
  3. present — the time now
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. charge — a price
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. file — a document
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. charge — in control
  14. file — a line of people
  15. charge — electricity
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. wake — a trail
  18. present — there
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. stem — to come from
  24. file — a tool

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