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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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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: mark · last · bowl · kick · patient · tear · plane · foot

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. plane — a tool
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. foot — a measure
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. last — finally
  16. mark — a grade
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. last — final
  21. last — to go on
  22. mark — a trace
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. kick — in football

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