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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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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: deal · race · patient · saw · wax · wind · scale · mate

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. wind — moving air
  3. deal — to handle
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — the tool
  6. mate — a partner
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. mate — a friend
  10. race — the arms race
  11. scale — in music
  12. wax — to grow
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. race — humankind
  16. wind — moving air
  17. scale — size or range
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. mate — to breed
  24. wind — to turn a key

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