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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 120 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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. race — the arms race
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. perch — the fish
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. tear — from crying
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. pass — a permit
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — a contest
  13. degree — from a university
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. wax — to grow
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. degree — an amount
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. tear — to rip
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. tear — from crying
  24. branch — a division

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