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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. stem — to come from
  3. fine — high quality
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. tear — to rip
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bass — low music
  13. tear — from crying
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. tear — from crying
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bass — the fish
  24. patient — a sick person

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