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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: present · clip · tear · pitch · ball · patient · degree · swing

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. degree — an amount
  3. present — the time now
  4. swing — music
  5. pitch — completely
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. degree — from a university
  9. swing — in golf
  10. clip — to cut
  11. present — there
  12. swing — to play on
  13. clip — a video
  14. ball — a great time
  15. tear — from crying
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. ball — a dance
  18. clip — for paper
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. tear — to rip
  21. present — a gift
  22. degree — temperature
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. tear — from crying

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