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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. spring — the season
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. spring — of water
  6. face — part of the head
  7. cap — a hat
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. bat — the animal
  10. rock — a stone
  11. pit — in a race
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. rock — music
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. spring — a coil
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. pit — a hole
  19. cap — a lid
  20. face — to confront
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. cap — of ice
  24. face — to point toward

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