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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. cold — not warm
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. pop — soda
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. pop — music
  10. wax — to grow
  11. stand — to bear
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. pop — to visit
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. roll — a list
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. roll — a cake
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. scale — size or range
  21. mine — for digging
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. cold — an illness
  24. scale — in music

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