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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 116 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 ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. 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. court — of law
  2. pound — a weight
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. court — for sport
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. fork — in a road
  7. tear — from crying
  8. wind — moving air
  9. court — of a king
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. tear — to rip
  13. stem — to come from
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. tear — from crying
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. wake — a trail
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. 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