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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: racket · nail · stick · patient · current · chest · squash · cap

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. cap — a hat
  3. squash — the sport
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. cap — of ice
  7. chest — of your body
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. squash — to crush
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. cap — a lid
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. chest — a box
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. chest — of your body
  19. current — of water
  20. current — electric
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. nail — for a hammer

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