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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bulb · cell · season · patient · land · saw · press · present

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. press — a publisher
  3. cell — a phone
  4. season — of the year
  5. cell — in biology
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. present — a gift
  9. saw — the tool
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. land — to come down
  13. season — in sport
  14. press — to push
  15. bulb — for light
  16. present — the time now
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. press — newspapers
  20. saw — the tool
  21. land — ground
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. present — there

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