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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. scale — size or range
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. fall — the season
  6. spring — of water
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. spring — the season
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. tube — the underground
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. scale — in music
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. hand — help
  17. tube — a container
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. pass — a permit

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