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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. cap — a lid
  3. key — for a lock
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. bark — to shout
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. key — in music
  11. clip — for paper
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. clip — to cut
  15. cap — of ice
  16. dip — to sink
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. wax — to grow
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. key — the most important part
  22. cap — a hat
  23. clip — a video
  24. fork — in a road

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