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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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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 · cell · bay · date · fine · band · toast · tear

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. tear — to rip
  3. tear — from crying
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. date — the fruit
  8. fine — high quality
  9. band — a ring
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. toast — bread
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. band — a music group
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. cell — a phone
  19. tear — from crying
  20. cell — in biology
  21. fine — all right
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. date — on the calendar

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