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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.

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: land · wax · club · shower · craft · lie · wound · patient

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. craft — a skill
  3. shower — to wash
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. wound — an injury
  7. land — a country
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. club — for golf
  10. craft — boats
  11. land — to come down
  12. club — for dancing
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. club — a group
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. land — ground
  18. shower — rain
  19. wax — to grow
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. lie — to recline

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