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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
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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: face · kid · wave · swing · patient · row · pitcher · rush

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. rush — hurry
  3. swing — to play on
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. kid — child
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. face — to confront
  10. kid — to tease
  11. face — to point toward
  12. swing — in golf
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. row — a line
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. row — to paddle
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. swing — music
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. face — part of the head
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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