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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. mark — a grade
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. hand — help
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. hand — in cards
  14. wax — to grow
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. mark — a trace
  18. race — a contest
  19. race — the arms race
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. season — of the year
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. race — humankind
  24. season — in sport

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