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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: cell · club · shower · patient · lash · calf · roll · net

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. net — for catching
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. shower — rain
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. roll — a cake
  10. club — for golf
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. cell — in biology
  15. club — a group
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. roll — a list
  18. net — in sport
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. shower — to wash
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. cell — a phone
  23. club — for dancing
  24. net — after costs

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