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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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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 · cell · bark · shower · mate · fork · bear · content

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — to shout
  4. mate — a friend
  5. content — happy
  6. cell — in biology
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. shower — rain
  9. bear — the animal
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. content — the amount
  12. shower — to wash
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. mate — to breed
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. cell — a phone
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. fork — in a road
  24. mate — a partner

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