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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 · bark · patient · bowl · temple · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — happy
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bark — to shout
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bowl — a dish

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