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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: patient · tear · staff · band · root · chest · prune · mug

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. mug — a cup
  3. tear — from crying
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. mug — a face
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. prune — to trim
  8. staff — a stick
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. root — the cause
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. staff — employees
  13. tear — to rip
  14. chest — of your body
  15. root — of a word
  16. root — of a plant
  17. band — a ring
  18. mug — to rob
  19. prune — to trim
  20. chest — of your body
  21. tear — from crying
  22. chest — a box
  23. band — a music group
  24. staff — employees

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