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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. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  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. field — farmland
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. scale — size or range
  5. field — a subject
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. plane — a tool
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. mug — a cup
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. mug — to rob
  12. board — to get on
  13. field — for sport
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. capital — a city
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. capital — money
  19. scale — in music
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. mug — a face
  22. board — a committee
  23. board — a flat piece
  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