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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: tear · snap · pound · fork · patient · stem

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  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. patient — a sick person
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. fork — in a road
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. snap — to click
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. pound — a weight
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — to rip
  17. stem — to come from
  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