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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: patient · bowl · branch · rule · wave · bulb · toast · cold

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bulb — for light
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. cold — an illness
  14. branch — a division
  15. toast — bread
  16. rule — government
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. rule — a law
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. cold — not warm

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