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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 120 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: mine · firm · fan · row · wound · patient · pound · cap

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. row — a line
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. firm — decided
  9. row — to paddle
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. wound — an injury
  12. mine — for digging
  13. pound — a weight
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. cap — a lid
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. firm — steady
  22. wound — an injury
  23. firm — a company
  24. cap — of ice

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