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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: patient · wax · bowl · roll · date · content · wound · arm

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. content — the amount
  4. roll — a cake
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. wound — an injury
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wax — to grow
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. content — happy
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. roll — a list
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. date — the fruit

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