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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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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: patient · scale · court · tear · rock · present

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. rock — music
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. court — for sport
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. present — the time now
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. present — there
  10. tear — from crying
  11. scale — in music
  12. tear — to rip
  13. scale — size or range
  14. tear — from crying
  15. court — of a king
  16. present — a gift
  17. court — of law
  18. rock — a stone

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