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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. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. staff — employees
  3. cold — an illness
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. file — a line of people
  6. staff — employees
  7. rest — a break
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. file — a document
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. rest — what's left
  15. wax — to grow
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. cold — not warm
  18. squash — the sport
  19. staff — a stick
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. squash — to crush
  22. rest — what's left
  23. file — a tool
  24. patient — a sick person

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