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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. stock — goods
  4. cue — a signal
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. file — a line of people
  7. tear — from crying
  8. band — a ring
  9. file — a document
  10. cue — a hint
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. cue — for pool
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. tear — from crying
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. stock — shares
  19. land — a country
  20. tear — to rip
  21. file — a tool
  22. land — ground
  23. band — a music group
  24. land — to come down

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