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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 120 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'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. spring — a coil
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. fine — high quality
  7. spring — of water
  8. bore — to tire
  9. fine — all right
  10. content — happy
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. hand — help
  13. court — of law
  14. content — the amount
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. hand — in cards
  17. spring — the season
  18. court — for sport
  19. court — of a king
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. bank — of a river
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. bore — to drill
  24. bank — for money

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