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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. rash — hasty
  3. bound — tied together
  4. field — a subject
  5. mark — a grade
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. field — for sport
  9. kick — in football
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. wind — moving air
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. field — farmland
  16. wind — moving air
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. bound — obliged
  20. mark — a trace
  21. rash — a series
  22. bound — certain
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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