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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wind — moving air
  3. field — for sport
  4. wind — moving air
  5. field — farmland
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. rock — a stone
  8. net — in sport
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. field — a subject
  11. band — a ring
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. net — for catching
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. net — after costs
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. perch — the fish
  22. band — a music group
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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