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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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Word bank
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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 · fork · suit · staff · clip

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. tear — from crying
  3. suit — in cards
  4. suit — clothes
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. tear — from crying
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. staff — a stick
  12. clip — to cut
  13. tear — to rip
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. staff — employees
  17. staff — employees
  18. fork — in a road

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