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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. object — a thing
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bear — the animal
  8. hand — in cards
  9. wax — to grow
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. wound — an injury
  13. object — an aim
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. cold — an illness
  16. object — to protest
  17. cold — not warm
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. bear — the animal
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. hand — help
  24. wound — an injury

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