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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: bark · face · branch · fan · court · ground · press · patient

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. court — of a king
  4. ground — the earth
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. ground — crushed
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. press — newspapers
  9. press — to push
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. branch — a division
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. face — to confront
  15. face — part of the head
  16. bark — to shout
  17. ground — a position
  18. court — for sport
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. face — to point toward
  21. press — a publisher
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. court — of law
  24. patient — a sick person

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