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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: tube · fall · nail · wind · tear · degree · patient · mug

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. degree — an amount
  4. tube — the underground
  5. tube — a container
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. fall — to drop
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. fall — the season
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. degree — from a university
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. tear — from crying
  16. fall — to drop
  17. wind — moving air
  18. degree — temperature
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — to rip
  21. mug — a cup
  22. wind — moving air
  23. mug — a face
  24. tube — in a tire

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