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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. kid — child
  3. toast — bread
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. field — a subject
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. kid — to tease
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. field — for sport

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