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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: rush · pitcher · wave · spring · patient · root · band · land

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. spring — a coil
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. land — to come down
  6. root — the cause
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. rush — hurry
  11. spring — of water
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. root — of a word
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. spring — the season
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. band — a music group
  19. land — a country
  20. band — a ring
  21. land — ground
  22. root — of a plant
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — a jug

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