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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: patient · cue · dip · drill · wind · plane · straw · bay

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. cue — a signal
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. wind — moving air
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. drill — the tool
  8. wind — moving air
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. dip — to sink
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. drill — a practice
  16. drill — army training
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. cue — for pool
  21. plane — a tool
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. cue — a hint
  24. plane — in geometry

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