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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: degree · spell · mine · safe · leaves · object · hand · patient

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. hand — help
  4. object — a thing
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. degree — temperature
  9. object — an aim
  10. hand — in cards
  11. spell — magic
  12. degree — from a university
  13. spell — letters
  14. object — to protest
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. mine — for digging
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. spell — a short time
  22. degree — an amount
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. safe — out of danger

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