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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: patient · last · degree · club · fan · snap · wax · can

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. club — for dancing
  4. wax — in the ear
  5. can — to be able to
  6. last — finally
  7. degree — an amount
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. wax — to grow
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. club — for golf
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. degree — from a university
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. last — to go on
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. club — a group
  20. last — final
  21. can — a tin
  22. can — a tin
  23. degree — temperature
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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