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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 120 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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — a subject
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bat — the animal
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. field — farmland
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. wind — moving air
  17. board — to get on
  18. stock — shares
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. stock — goods
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. board — a committee
  24. fan — a supporter

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