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

Word bank: wax · deal · capital · chair · snap · patient

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. 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. snap — to snap out of it
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. chair — a leader
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. snap — to click
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. wax — to grow
  11. deal — to handle
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. capital — a city
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. 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