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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — from a university
  6. face — part of the head
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. face — to confront
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. degree — an amount
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. stem — to come from
  17. staff — employees
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. face — to point toward
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. wound — an injury
  23. staff — a stick
  24. staff — employees

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