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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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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: bark · patient · deal · mine · wound · lean

  1. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. wound — an injury
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. bark — to shout
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. wound — an injury
  14. mine — for digging
  15. lean — to bend
  16. lean — thin
  17. deal — to handle
  18. bark — of a tree

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