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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. field — for sport
  3. mark — a trace
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. object — a thing
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. spring — the season
  8. spring — of water
  9. field — a subject
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. spring — a coil
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mark — a grade
  16. wake — a trail
  17. object — to protest
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. field — farmland
  21. content — the amount
  22. content — happy
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  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