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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. shower — to wash
  4. fine — high quality
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. wax — to grow
  8. saw — the tool
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. spell — a short time
  12. mate — to breed
  13. mate — a friend
  14. saw — the tool
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. spell — letters
  17. bat — the animal
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. spell — magic
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. fine — all right
  22. mate — a partner
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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