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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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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: wax · cold · wind · patient · cue · fine · clip · rock

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. cue — a hint
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cue — a signal
  8. cold — not warm
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. rock — a stone
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. clip — a video
  18. rock — music
  19. fine — all right
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. fine — high quality
  23. clip — to cut
  24. cue — for pool

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