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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. row — a line
  4. field — a subject
  5. stem — to come from
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. field — farmland
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. field — for sport
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. current — of water
  13. current — electric
  14. row — to paddle
  15. current — happening now
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. board — to get on
  19. mug — a face
  20. mug — to rob
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. bark — to shout
  24. mug — a cup

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