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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: bore · tear · pitch · hand · staff · fall · stem · patient

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. bore — to tire
  4. tear — from crying
  5. staff — a stick
  6. staff — employees
  7. bore — to drill
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. hand — in cards
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. fall — the season
  13. hand — help
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. pitch — completely
  17. staff — employees
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. fall — to drop
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. stem — to come from
  22. fall — to drop
  23. tear — from crying
  24. pitch — a sports field

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