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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: rule · bay · pop · last · drill · patient · wave · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. drill — a practice
  4. kid — child
  5. pop — to visit
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. drill — army training
  9. pop — music
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — finally
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. rule — government
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. rule — a law
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. last — final
  20. kid — to tease
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. pop — soda

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