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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 116 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. bass — the fish
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. wax — to grow
  7. drill — army training
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pass — a permit
  10. spring — a coil
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. spring — of water
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. clip — to cut
  17. clip — a video
  18. drill — a practice
  19. clip — for paper
  20. drill — the tool
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. spring — the season
  24. bass — low music

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