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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: kid · date · shower · key · patient · bowl · staff · mate

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — to tease
  3. mate — a partner
  4. staff — employees
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. mate — a friend
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. staff — employees
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. shower — to wash
  11. key — for a lock
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. key — in music
  14. shower — rain
  15. staff — a stick
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. kid — child
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. mate — to breed
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. key — the most important part

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