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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. tear — to rip
  3. court — for sport
  4. march — music
  5. court — of law
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. march — the month
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. roll — a cake
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. rule — government
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. court — of a king
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. roll — a list
  18. march — the month
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. tear — from crying
  21. mine — for digging
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bark — to shout
  24. rule — a law

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