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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. march — music
  6. season — of the year
  7. game — a match
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. last — finally
  11. last — to go on
  12. game — wild animals
  13. last — final
  14. march — the month
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. field — farmland
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. march — the month
  21. field — a subject
  22. season — in sport
  23. field — for sport
  24. nail — on a finger

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