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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: spring · patient · fall · bulb · pitcher · tear · shower · stand

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. fall — to drop
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. shower — rain
  6. fall — to drop
  7. stand — to bear
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. bulb — for light
  10. spring — the season
  11. spring — of water
  12. bulb — for light
  13. tear — from crying
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. spring — a coil
  18. shower — to wash
  19. tear — to rip
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. fall — the season
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pitcher — a jug

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