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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wound — an injury
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. face — part of the head
  6. craft — a skill
  7. file — a document
  8. march — the month
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. face — to confront
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — of water
  13. craft — boats
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. spring — the season
  16. march — the month
  17. march — music
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. face — to point toward
  20. wound — an injury
  21. file — a tool
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. file — a line of people
  24. branch — a division

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