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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: prune · patient · ball · roll · staff · mug · tear · stem

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. roll — a list
  4. tear — from crying
  5. mug — a cup
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. mug — a face
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. staff — employees
  10. prune — to trim
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. staff — employees
  14. ball — a great time
  15. staff — a stick
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. prune — to trim
  21. ball — a dance
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. stem — to come from
  24. mug — to rob

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