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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
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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: wave · bass · march · game · bark · patient · land · date

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. bark — to shout
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. game — a match
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. march — the month
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. land — to come down
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. land — a country
  15. march — music
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. date — the fruit
  19. land — ground
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bass — low music
  23. march — the month
  24. bark — of a tree

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