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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. squash — the sport
  3. wax — to grow
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. staff — a stick
  6. mate — to breed
  7. staff — employees
  8. squash — to crush
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. mate — a friend
  13. staff — employees
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. content — the amount
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. toast — bread
  19. mate — a partner
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. content — happy
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. cold — not warm

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