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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. hand — in cards
  5. roll — a list
  6. roll — a cake
  7. stock — goods
  8. scale — in music
  9. scale — size or range
  10. field — a subject
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. bound — tied together
  15. field — for sport
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. bound — certain
  18. field — farmland
  19. stock — shares
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. bound — obliged
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. patient — a sick person

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