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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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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 · bound · bat · cell · present · row · spring · fine

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. bound — tied together
  3. spring — a coil
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bat — the animal
  7. cell — in biology
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. fine — high quality
  10. row — to paddle
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. fine — all right
  13. spring — the season
  14. present — there
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bound — certain
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. present — the time now
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. cell — a phone
  23. spring — of water
  24. present — a gift

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