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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: bore · cap · patient · branch · tear · lash · pit · sharp

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. branch — a division
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. bore — to tire
  8. tear — from crying
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cap — a hat
  12. bore — to drill
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. cap — of ice
  15. tear — to rip
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. pit — a hole
  18. sharp — clever
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. pit — in a race
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. branch — of a tree

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