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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: trunk · hand · content · patient · mate · current · saw · season

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. current — electric
  3. mate — a friend
  4. mate — to breed
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. season — of the year
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. saw — the tool
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. current — of water
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. content — happy
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. hand — in cards
  17. current — happening now
  18. hand — help
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. mate — a partner
  22. content — the amount
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. season — in sport

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