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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. row — to paddle
  4. field — farmland
  5. prune — to trim
  6. field — a subject
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. season — of the year
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. cue — a signal
  16. cue — a hint
  17. cue — for pool
  18. row — a line
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. prune — to trim
  24. field — for sport

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