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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. chair — a leader
  5. cell — in biology
  6. field — farmland
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. snap — to click
  9. wound — an injury
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — for sport
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. fine — all right
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. fine — high quality
  17. wound — an injury
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. cell — a phone
  24. fine — a penalty

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