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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. shower — to wash
  3. rush — hurry
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. saw — the tool
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. dip — to sink
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. wax — to grow
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. charge — a price
  18. shower — rain
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. saw — the tool
  21. band — a ring
  22. charge — electricity
  23. charge — in control
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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