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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: court · object · craft · bat · patient · tear

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. court — of law
  3. bat — the animal
  4. craft — a skill
  5. tear — from crying
  6. court — of a king
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. court — for sport
  11. object — to protest
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. tear — to rip
  14. object — an aim
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. craft — boats
  17. tear — from crying
  18. object — a thing

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