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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 museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. track — a path
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. mug — a face
  7. deal — to handle
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. track — a song
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. track — to keep track
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. mug — a cup
  16. bat — the animal
  17. wax — to grow
  18. mug — to rob
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — in music

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