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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. bound — obliged
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. shower — rain
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. wound — an injury
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. shower — to wash
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wax — to grow
  14. wound — an injury
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bound — certain
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. nail — for a hammer

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