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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. mug — to rob
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. current — of water
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. current — electric
  11. mug — a cup
  12. current — happening now
  13. mug — a face
  14. field — farmland
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. pound — a weight

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