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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 · mark · kid · last · ground · mate · cue

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. ground — the earth
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. mate — to breed
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. spring — the season
  7. mark — a grade
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. last — to go on
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. mate — a partner
  12. ground — a position
  13. mark — a trace
  14. cue — a signal
  15. kid — to tease
  16. last — final
  17. cue — a hint
  18. kid — child
  19. last — finally
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. spring — of water
  22. mate — a friend
  23. cue — for pool
  24. spring — a coil

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