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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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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: patient · march · ground · wave · degree · cold · safe · mug

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. cold — not warm
  3. ground — a position
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. ground — crushed
  7. degree — from a university
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. mug — a cup
  10. march — the month
  11. mug — a face
  12. mug — to rob
  13. cold — an illness
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. degree — temperature
  18. degree — an amount
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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