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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 120 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. spring — a coil
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. chair — a leader
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. spring — the season
  14. lean — to bend
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. lean — thin
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. pass — a permit
  20. spring — of water
  21. prune — to trim
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. prune — to trim
  24. chair — a professorship

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