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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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. pass — a permit
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. race — the arms race
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. clip — to cut
  9. last — finally
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. fork — in a road
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — humankind
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. last — final
  18. clip — a video
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. last — to go on
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. clip — for paper
  24. mouse — for a computer

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