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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wave · file · cold · tear · patient · mouse

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. file — a tool
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. file — a document
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. file — a line of people
  11. tear — from crying
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. cold — not warm
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip

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