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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. saw — the tool
  4. snap — to click
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — obliged
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. last — final
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. last — finally
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. stem — to come from
  15. wax — to grow
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bank — of a river
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. last — to go on
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. bank — for money

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