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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: bear · kid · spring · cap · patient · fall · fine · dip

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. bear — the animal
  3. kid — to tease
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fall — the season
  6. bear — the animal
  7. fall — to drop
  8. kid — child
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. cap — a lid
  11. fall — to drop
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. dip — to sink
  14. spring — of water
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. spring — the season
  17. cap — of ice
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. fine — high quality
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. cap — a hat

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