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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 116 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: fan · stock · wind · pitcher · staff · ground · wax · patient

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wind — moving air
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. staff — a stick
  6. ground — the earth
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. ground — crushed
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. stock — goods
  11. wax — to grow
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. ground — a position
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. staff — employees
  19. stock — shares
  20. staff — employees
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. wind — to turn a key

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