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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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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: tube · fine · spring · patient · cell · pitcher · wound · rush

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. spring — of water
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. tube — the underground
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. wound — an injury
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. rush — hurry
  15. fine — all right
  16. cell — a phone
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. spring — a coil
  19. fine — high quality
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. tube — a container
  22. wound — an injury
  23. spring — the season
  24. pitcher — a jug

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