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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: mine · patient · bowl · bark · pitch · land · bear · kick

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. land — to come down
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bear — the animal
  6. kick — in football
  7. bark — to shout
  8. land — ground
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. pitch — completely
  11. land — a country
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bear — the animal
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. mine — for digging

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