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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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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: race · wind · patient · court · pound · roll · charge · chair

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. charge — electricity
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. chair — a leader
  5. pound — a weight
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. court — for sport
  8. charge — in control
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. race — the arms race
  11. race — humankind
  12. court — of a king
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. wind — moving air
  15. charge — a price
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. roll — a cake
  18. wind — moving air
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. race — a contest
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. roll — a list
  24. roll — on a roll

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