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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: patient · temple · track · tear · date · cell

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. track — a song
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. track — a path
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tear — from crying
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. cell — a phone
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. tear — from crying
  13. cell — in biology
  14. track — to keep track
  15. date — the fruit
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. date — on the calendar

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