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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. spring — a coil
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. face — to confront
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. content — happy
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. root — the cause
  12. branch — a division
  13. root — of a word
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. spring — the season
  16. content — the amount
  17. face — part of the head
  18. root — of a plant
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. face — to point toward
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. spring — of water
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. racket — for tennis

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