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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: patient · mine · court · ground · rock · nail · lean · deal

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. lean — thin
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. ground — a position
  6. deal — to handle
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. lean — to bend
  9. ground — crushed
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. ground — the earth
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. rock — a stone
  14. rock — music
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. court — of law
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. mine — for digging
  21. court — for sport
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. court — of a king

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