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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. cue — a signal
  3. wax — to grow
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. cue — a hint
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. mate — a friend
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. cue — for pool
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. wake — a trail
  13. rock — a stone
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. rock — music
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. mate — to breed
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. capital — money

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