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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: bowl · wind · saw · rush · patient · can · mine · degree

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. degree — temperature
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. mine — for digging
  8. degree — from a university
  9. can — to be able to
  10. saw — the tool
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. wind — moving air
  14. degree — an amount
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. rush — hurry
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. wind — moving air

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