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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 120 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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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: mark · bore · patient · last · pitcher · calf · march · pop

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. mark — a grade
  6. last — to go on
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bore — to tire
  10. march — music
  11. last — finally
  12. pop — soda
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. pop — music
  15. march — the month
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. march — the month
  18. mark — a trace
  19. last — final
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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