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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. capital — money
  3. row — to paddle
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. wax — to grow
  7. prune — to trim
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. capital — a city
  19. rush — hurry
  20. row — a line
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. prune — to trim
  23. dip — to sink
  24. coach — a trainer

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