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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. sharp — clever
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. kid — to tease
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. date — the fruit
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. wind — moving air
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. wax — to grow
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. cap — a lid
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. cap — a hat
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cap — of ice
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. kid — child

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