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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  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. hand — in cards
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. field — for sport
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. mug — a cup
  11. bat — the animal
  12. chair — a leader
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. mug — to rob
  17. field — a subject
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. hand — help
  22. mug — a face
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  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