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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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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: stand · clip · present · saw · ground · scale · patient · shower

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. shower — rain
  3. clip — for paper
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. clip — a video
  6. shower — to wash
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. present — the time now
  9. clip — to cut
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. stand — to bear
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — the earth
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. scale — size or range
  17. present — there
  18. scale — in music
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. saw — the tool
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. saw — the tool
  24. ground — crushed

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