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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bear — the animal
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. capital — money
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. stem — to come from
  10. wax — to grow
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. field — for sport
  15. tear — to rip
  16. field — a subject
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. board — a committee
  19. board — to get on
  20. tear — from crying
  21. capital — a city
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. field — farmland
  24. bear — the animal

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