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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 116 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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  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. bass — the fish
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. bear — the animal
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. rash — a series
  6. rash — hasty
  7. tear — to rip
  8. bear — the animal
  9. tear — from crying
  10. field — farmland
  11. bass — low music
  12. mate — a friend
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bark — to shout
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. field — a subject
  17. mate — to breed
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. mate — a partner
  20. tear — from crying
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. bass — the instrument
  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