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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: shower · lean · branch · fall · face · temple · patient · ground

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. fall — the season
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. fall — to drop
  5. face — to point toward
  6. lean — thin
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. face — to confront
  12. ground — a position
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. shower — rain
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. ground — crushed
  18. lean — to bend
  19. face — part of the head
  20. ground — the earth
  21. branch — a division
  22. fall — to drop
  23. shower — to wash
  24. lean — to rest against

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