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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. date — the fruit
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. mine — for digging
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — to rip
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. patient — a sick person

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