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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 · row · trunk · bass · cue · tear · snap · charge

  1. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of an elephant
  2. bass — the fish
  3. cue — a signal
  4. charge — electricity
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — low music
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. charge — a price
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. cue — for pool
  14. snap — to click
  15. tear — from crying
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. tear — to rip
  18. cue — a hint
  19. row — a line
  20. tear — from crying
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. row — to paddle
  24. charge — in control

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