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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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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: band · can · patient · spring · shower · fork

  1. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  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. fork — to eat with
  2. spring — the season
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. can — a tin
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. fork — in a road
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a music group
  9. can — a tin
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. spring — a coil
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. can — to be able to
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. shower — rain
  16. shower — to wash
  17. spring — of water
  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