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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: content · patient · march · tear · drill · scale

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. content — the amount
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. march — the month
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. tear — from crying
  7. march — the month
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. drill — a practice
  11. tear — from crying
  12. scale — in music
  13. drill — army training
  14. content — happy
  15. scale — size or range
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. drill — the tool
  18. tear — to rip

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