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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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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: lie · bark · cue · cap · mate · patient · spell · content

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. cue — a signal
  3. cap — a hat
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. cap — of ice
  6. spell — letters
  7. content — happy
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. content — the amount
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cue — for pool
  13. cue — a hint
  14. mate — a partner
  15. bark — to shout
  16. spell — a short time
  17. mate — to breed
  18. lie — to recline
  19. mate — a friend
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. spell — magic
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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