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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: rush · game · rash · pop · scale · court · band · patient

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. pop — to visit
  7. court — of a king
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. game — a match
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. court — for sport
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. rash — a series
  14. game — wild animals
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. pop — music
  18. band — a music group
  19. scale — in music
  20. band — a ring
  21. pop — soda
  22. court — of law
  23. scale — size or range
  24. rush — hurry

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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