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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. hand — in cards
  3. wax — to grow
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. pass — a permit
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. snap — to click
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. hand — help
  20. stem — to come from
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. patient — a sick person

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