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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. row — a line
  4. roll — a cake
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. field — farmland
  8. current — of water
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. roll — a list
  13. club — for golf
  14. cell — a phone
  15. club — for dancing
  16. current — electric
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. field — a subject
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. current — happening now
  22. field — for sport
  23. cell — in biology
  24. club — a group

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