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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pop · patient · march · spring · leaves · mouse · court · sharp

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pop — soda
  3. court — of law
  4. spring — of water
  5. court — for sport
  6. court — of a king
  7. spring — a coil
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. march — the month
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. march — music
  12. spring — the season
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. march — the month
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. pop — music

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