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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 120 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: patient · spring · tear · stick · current · kick · foot · fall

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. current — of water
  3. tear — from crying
  4. current — electric
  5. foot — a measure
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. spring — of water
  10. spring — a coil
  11. tear — to rip
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. spring — the season
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. current — happening now
  21. fall — to drop
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. kick — in football

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