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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 116 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: spell · patient · content · tear · pop · vault · mate · lean

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  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. lean — to bend
  2. mate — a friend
  3. tear — from crying
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spell — letters
  7. spell — magic
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mate — a partner
  13. pop — to visit
  14. content — happy
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — a safe
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. pop — music
  19. tear — to rip
  20. pop — soda
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. tear — from crying
  23. lean — thin
  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