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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: current · patient · land · kid · mouse · staff · scale · court

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. scale — in music
  3. kid — to tease
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. current — happening now
  6. court — of law
  7. current — electric
  8. land — to come down
  9. kid — child
  10. staff — employees
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. current — of water
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. staff — a stick
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. staff — employees
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. court — of a king
  20. land — ground
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. scale — size or range
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. court — for sport

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