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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 120 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: content · pit · patient · prune · current · band · cap · tear

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. pit — in a race
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. cap — a hat
  5. tear — to rip
  6. prune — to trim
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. tear — from crying
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. cap — of ice
  12. band — a music group
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cap — a lid
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. band — a ring
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. current — happening now
  19. pit — a hole
  20. content — happy
  21. current — electric
  22. prune — to trim
  23. current — of water
  24. content — the amount

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