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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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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: sharp · shower · bass · patient · band · race · wax · bulb

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. bass — low music
  3. race — the arms race
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — the fish
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bulb — for light
  10. band — a ring
  11. shower — rain
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. sharp — clever
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. wax — to grow
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. shower — to wash
  22. race — humankind
  23. race — a contest
  24. sharp — exactly

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