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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: bore · rash · patient · staff · spring · stem · degree · ball

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. spring — of water
  5. degree — from a university
  6. staff — employees
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. ball — a great time
  9. spring — the season
  10. rash — hasty
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. rash — a series
  13. spring — a coil
  14. staff — a stick
  15. degree — temperature
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. stem — to come from
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bore — to tire
  21. bore — to drill
  22. staff — employees
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. degree — an amount

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