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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: wound · last · tear · mine · mug · patient · spring · staff

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. spring — a coil
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. last — to go on
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. spring — the season
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. last — final
  11. spring — of water
  12. mug — to rob
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. staff — employees
  16. mug — a face
  17. mug — a cup
  18. wound — an injury
  19. last — finally
  20. tear — from crying
  21. staff — a stick
  22. wound — an injury
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. staff — employees

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