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

Word bank: temple · fall · patient · bear · chair · tear

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. chair — a leader
  4. bear — the animal
  5. fall — to drop
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. bear — the animal
  9. fall — the season
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. fall — to drop
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. tear — to rip
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. tear — from crying
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. tear — from crying

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