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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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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: fork · patient · racket · bound · board · wax · cold · file

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. bound — certain
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. cold — not warm
  7. wax — to grow
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — tied together
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fork — in a road
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. file — a line of people
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. file — a document
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. board — a committee
  21. board — to get on
  22. file — a tool
  23. cold — an illness
  24. patient — a sick person

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