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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 · ball · stick · lean · cabinet · fork · tear · lie

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. fork — in a road
  10. tear — from crying
  11. ball — a great time
  12. tear — to rip
  13. lean — to bend
  14. ball — a dance
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. lie — to recline
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. lean — thin
  24. lie — an untruth

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