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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: pitcher · patient · spring · mouse · face · can · last · tear

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. spring — of water
  3. can — a tin
  4. tear — to rip
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. face — to point toward
  12. tear — from crying
  13. face — part of the head
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. last — to go on
  18. can — a tin
  19. tear — from crying
  20. last — finally
  21. spring — the season
  22. spring — a coil
  23. face — to confront
  24. can — to be able to

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