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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. last — finally
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. last — final
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. suit — in cards
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lean — thin
  9. last — to go on
  10. spring — the season
  11. spring — of water
  12. mine — for digging
  13. suit — clothes
  14. spring — a coil
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. tear — to rip
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. tear — from crying
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. lean — to bend
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. calf — a young 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