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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 · wind · hand · band · sharp · bulb · scale · hide

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. scale — in music
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — help
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. band — a music group
  16. wind — moving air
  17. band — a ring
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. scale — size or range
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — for light

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