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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · patient · drill · chip · wind · firm

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. firm — decided
  3. wind — moving air
  4. drill — army training
  5. firm — steady
  6. drill — the tool
  7. drill — a practice
  8. tear — from crying
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. firm — a company
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. tear — to rip
  15. wind — moving air
  16. chip — for betting
  17. tear — from crying
  18. patient — calm and waiting

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