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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 116 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: mouse · wound · current · rash · patient · spring · stem · scale

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. scale — size or range
  6. current — of water
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. spring — of water
  9. scale — in music
  10. current — electric
  11. wound — an injury
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. rash — a series
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. wound — an injury
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. spring — the season
  22. spring — a coil
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. current — happening now

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