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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 116 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 nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. charge — a price
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. perch — the fish
  9. spring — a coil
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. kid — to tease
  15. wax — to grow
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. spring — the season
  19. kid — child
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. charge — in control
  22. spring — of water
  23. charge — electricity
  24. perch — for a bird

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