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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. club — a group
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. net — after costs
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. court — of law
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. court — of a king
  12. drill — a practice
  13. drill — army training
  14. spring — a coil
  15. net — in sport
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — of water
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. net — for catching
  21. club — for dancing
  22. club — for golf
  23. drill — the tool
  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