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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.

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: ball · pop · patient · spell · rash · fan · pitch · wax

  1. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — in the ear
  2. rash — a series
  3. wax — to grow
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. rash — hasty
  6. ball — a dance
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. pop — to visit
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. spell — letters
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. spell — magic
  14. ball — a great time
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — completely
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. pop — music
  22. pop — soda
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. spell — a short time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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