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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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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: wind · ruler · pound · patient · row · clip

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. row — to paddle
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wind — moving air
  6. row — a line
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. clip — a video
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. clip — to cut
  13. clip — for paper
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. pound — a weight

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