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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 120 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: land · patient · swing · mate · ruler · rush · spring · lie

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. spring — a coil
  4. lie — to recline
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. land — a country
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. swing — in golf
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. spring — the season
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. mate — a partner
  14. rush — hurry
  15. mate — a friend
  16. swing — music
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. mate — to breed
  19. land — ground
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. swing — to play on
  22. land — to come down
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. patient — a sick person

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