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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 116 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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. field — for sport
  3. rest — a break
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. field — farmland
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. ground — crushed
  10. chair — a leader
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. ground — a position
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. pit — in a race
  16. rest — what's left
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. field — a subject
  21. ground — the earth
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wake — a trail
  24. patient — a sick person

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