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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: patient · club · spring · wound · racket · degree · rest · rash

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. wound — an injury
  5. rest — what's left
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. degree — temperature
  8. spring — the season
  9. club — a group
  10. spring — of water
  11. club — for dancing
  12. rest — a break
  13. rest — what's left
  14. degree — from a university
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. rash — hasty
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. degree — an amount
  22. rash — a series
  23. club — for golf
  24. spring — a coil

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