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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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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: patient · degree · cold · safe · hide · wake · tear · staff

  1. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. staff — employees
  3. degree — from a university
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. staff — employees
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. degree — temperature
  12. cold — not warm
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. cold — an illness
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. tear — from crying
  19. staff — a stick
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — to rip
  24. hide — to keep secret

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