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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. court — of law
  9. dip — to sink
  10. game — wild animals
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. rule — a law
  14. game — a match
  15. court — for sport
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. court — of a king
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. wax — to grow
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. rule — government

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