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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. drill — a practice
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. content — the amount
  5. craft — boats
  6. court — of law
  7. drill — army training
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. field — for sport
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. craft — a skill
  15. field — farmland
  16. drill — the tool
  17. court — for sport
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. bass — the fish
  21. content — happy
  22. court — of a king
  23. bass — low music
  24. content — videos and posts

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