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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. bank — for money
  3. chest — a box
  4. kick — in football
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. spring — of water
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. bank — for money
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. row — a line
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. chest — of your body
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. spring — a coil
  16. band — a ring
  17. chest — of your body
  18. row — to paddle
  19. spring — the season
  20. bank — of a river
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. band — a music group
  23. stem — to come from
  24. row — a quarrel

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