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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.

Words on the sheet
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: kid · plane · patient · branch · court · pop · deal · tube

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. court — for sport
  4. pop — soda
  5. tube — a container
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. plane — a tool
  9. deal — to handle
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. kid — child
  13. tube — the underground
  14. court — of law
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pop — music
  17. court — of a king
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. pop — to visit
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. branch — of a bank

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