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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: date · rest · bat · ball · patient · mate · charge · straw

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. charge — a price
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. mate — a friend
  6. rest — what's left
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. date — the fruit
  11. rest — a break
  12. mate — a partner
  13. charge — in control
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. mate — to breed
  19. ball — a dance
  20. ball — a great time
  21. bat — the animal
  22. charge — electricity
  23. straw — a straw man
  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