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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: mine · land · wave · current · wound · mate · degree · patient

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. mine — for digging
  5. land — to come down
  6. degree — temperature
  7. current — of water
  8. current — happening now
  9. degree — from a university
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. mate — a partner
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. mate — a friend
  17. land — ground
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. wound — an injury
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. degree — an amount
  23. wound — an injury
  24. current — electric

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