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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. sharp — clever
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. bat — the animal
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. cap — a hat
  10. band — a ring
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. cap — a lid
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. cap — of ice
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. band — a music group
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. board — a committee
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. board — to get on
  24. wave — of the sea

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