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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: clip · rock · patient · land · pound · cap · safe · dip

  1. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. rock — music
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. land — a country
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — for paper
  8. cap — a lid
  9. cap — a hat
  10. clip — to cut
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. land — to come down
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. land — ground
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. rock — a stone
  21. dip — to sink
  22. pound — a weight
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. cap — of ice

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