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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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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: roll · patient · season · tear · hide · hand · bear · pitcher

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. roll — a list
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. tear — from crying
  7. hand — in cards
  8. roll — a cake
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. bear — the animal
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. hand — help
  14. season — of the year
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. season — in sport
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bear — the animal
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. tear — from crying
  24. hide — to keep secret

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