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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.

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: bat · land · foot · charge · band · patient · wax · arm

  1. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. band — a ring
  3. land — to come down
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. land — ground
  7. band — a music group
  8. charge — a price
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. land — a country
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. charge — in control
  15. charge — electricity
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. wax — to grow
  19. foot — a measure
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. foot — the bottom
  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