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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 120 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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. cell — in biology
  4. file — a line of people
  5. can — a tin
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. pound — a weight
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. file — a document
  12. file — a tool
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. can — to be able to
  16. can — a tin
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. cell — a phone
  19. wax — to grow
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — music
  22. bat — the animal
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. cell — in a prison

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