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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. fine — all right
  3. fine — high quality
  4. toast — bread
  5. pit — a hole
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. field — a subject
  8. pit — in a race
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — to cut
  11. clip — a video
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. object — to protest
  16. object — a thing
  17. mug — to rob
  18. mug — a face
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. object — an aim
  21. field — farmland
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. mug — a cup

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