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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. net — after costs
  7. net — in sport
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. field — farmland
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. dip — to sink
  17. field — for sport
  18. net — for catching
  19. lie — to recline
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. field — a subject
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. wax — to grow
  24. lie — an untruth

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