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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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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: tube · patient · snap · bark · suit · court · foot · fall

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. suit — clothes
  6. court — of a king
  7. tube — the underground
  8. snap — to click
  9. court — of law
  10. suit — in cards
  11. bark — to shout
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. court — for sport
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. fall — the season
  20. tube — a container
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. fall — to drop
  23. foot — a measure
  24. fall — to drop

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