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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: bear · march · patient · firm · pitcher · row · net · pop

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. pop — music
  3. march — music
  4. march — the month
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bear — the animal
  7. net — for catching
  8. firm — steady
  9. march — the month
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bear — the animal
  13. pop — to visit
  14. row — to paddle
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. row — a line
  19. firm — a company
  20. pop — soda
  21. firm — decided
  22. net — in sport
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. net — after costs

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