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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. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. chip — to eat
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. march — music
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. chip — for betting
  7. march — the month
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. march — the month
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — farmland
  15. land — a country
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. field — for sport
  18. land — to come down
  19. land — ground
  20. kid — child
  21. kid — to tease
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. cabinet — ministers

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