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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. field — for sport
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. net — after costs
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. current — happening now
  10. current — of water
  11. current — electric
  12. mine — for digging
  13. field — a subject
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. net — for catching
  20. net — in sport
  21. field — farmland
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. jam — in traffic

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