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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. ground — the earth
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. craft — a skill
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. swing — to play on
  10. field — farmland
  11. swing — in golf
  12. drill — the tool
  13. ground — crushed
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. swing — music
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. drill — a practice
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. craft — boats
  21. field — a subject
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. field — for sport
  24. drill — army training

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