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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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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. pound — a weight
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. march — the month
  13. ground — crushed
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. fall — the season
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. ground — the earth
  18. kick — in football
  19. march — the month
  20. fall — to drop
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. march — music
  23. fall — to drop
  24. ground — a position

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