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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: foot · patient · tear · cell · snap · scale · jam · can

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. foot — a measure
  4. tear — from crying
  5. scale — size or range
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. can — a tin
  8. can — a tin
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. snap — to click
  12. cell — a phone
  13. tear — to rip
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. tear — from crying
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. scale — in music
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. can — to be able to
  24. cell — in biology

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