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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
468
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 · row · plane · safe · pop · swing · patient

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. swing — to play on
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pop — music
  11. row — a line
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. cold — not warm
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. plane — a tool
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. wax — to grow
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — in golf
  21. row — to paddle
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. row — a quarrel

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