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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: stock · patient · cell · coach · bowl · clip · firm · fall

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. fall — to drop
  7. firm — steady
  8. stock — shares
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. clip — to cut
  12. firm — a company
  13. clip — for paper
  14. stock — goods
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. clip — a video
  17. firm — decided
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cell — a phone
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. cell — in biology
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. fall — the season

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