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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. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. ground — crushed
  4. bark — to shout
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. season — of the year
  10. ground — the earth
  11. lie — to recline
  12. season — in sport
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. date — the fruit
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. ground — a position
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. kick — in football
  22. wound — an injury
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. lie — an untruth

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