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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. squash — to crush
  3. season — in sport
  4. current — happening now
  5. craft — boats
  6. squash — the sport
  7. current — of water
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. wax — to grow
  10. craft — a skill
  11. hand — in cards
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. current — electric
  15. season — of the year
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. hand — help
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. bass — low music
  21. bass — the fish
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. bass — the instrument

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