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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: club · staff · content · rash · game · patient · mine · charge

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. club — for dancing
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. content — happy
  6. game — a match
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. charge — a price
  9. staff — employees
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. staff — employees
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. club — for golf
  15. club — a group
  16. content — the amount
  17. rash — hasty
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. staff — a stick
  20. charge — in control
  21. game — wild animals
  22. mine — for digging
  23. charge — electricity
  24. game — a kind of play

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