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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 116 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: tear · firm · mate · kick · patient · plane · bowl · clip

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. mate — a partner
  4. firm — a company
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. mate — a friend
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. clip — to cut
  11. tear — from crying
  12. kick — in football
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. tear — to rip
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. clip — for paper
  18. plane — a tool
  19. clip — a video
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. mate — to breed
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. firm — decided
  24. firm — steady

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