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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: cold · rock · sharp · club · wave · trunk · patient · kid

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. club — for dancing
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. kid — to tease
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. rock — a stone
  14. rock — music
  15. cold — an illness
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. club — for golf
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. club — a group
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. cold — not warm
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. kid — child
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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