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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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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: bowl · patient · tear · stem · trunk · face · current · lie

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. lie — to recline
  4. face — to point toward
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. current — of water
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. tear — to rip
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. current — electric
  12. current — happening now
  13. tear — from crying
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. face — part of the head
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. face — to confront
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. stem — to come from
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. lie — an untruth

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