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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. can — to be able to
  3. can — a tin
  4. wax — to grow
  5. chair — a leader
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. face — part of the head
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. cold — not warm
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. can — a tin
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. fork — in a road
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. face — to confront
  20. face — to point toward
  21. bat — the animal
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. cold — an illness

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