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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · leaves · mine · press · game · lash · pound · scale

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. mine — for digging
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. pound — a weight
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. press — newspapers
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. press — to push
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. press — a publisher
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. scale — in music
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. game — a match
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. scale — size or range
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. leaves — of a tree

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