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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  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. club — for dancing
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. club — for golf
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. board — to get on
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. spring — the season
  11. tear — from crying
  12. spring — of water
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tube — the underground
  15. tear — to rip
  16. perch — the fish
  17. club — a group
  18. plane — a tool
  19. spring — a coil
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. tube — a container
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. board — a committee
  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