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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 116 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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  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 — a sick person
  2. current — happening now
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. wax — to grow
  7. current — electric
  8. court — of law
  9. ground — crushed
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. cold — not warm
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. current — of water
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. court — of a king
  19. march — the month
  20. cold — an illness
  21. ground — the earth
  22. ground — a position
  23. court — for sport
  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