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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 ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. date — the fruit
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. stock — goods
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. march — the month
  9. field — a subject
  10. shower — rain
  11. shower — to wash
  12. field — for sport
  13. stock — shares
  14. mark — a trace
  15. march — the month
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. field — farmland
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. mark — a grade
  23. march — music
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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