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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: lie · content · patient · mark · bear · court · cold · spell

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. content — happy
  5. spell — magic
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. spell — letters
  8. court — for sport
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. court — of law
  13. bear — the animal
  14. mark — a grade
  15. bear — the animal
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. content — the amount
  19. mark — a trace
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. lie — to recline
  22. cold — not warm
  23. court — of a king
  24. cold — an illness

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