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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. bear — the animal
  3. field — farmland
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bat — the animal
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. swing — music
  10. field — a subject
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — in golf
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. row — a line
  15. bear — the animal
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. field — for sport
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. stand — for spectators

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