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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — of the year
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. ground — a position
  9. tear — to rip
  10. ground — the earth
  11. season — in sport
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. tear — from crying
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. tear — from crying
  16. last — final
  17. court — of law
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. court — for sport
  21. last — to go on
  22. court — of a king
  23. ground — crushed
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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