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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. club — for golf
  5. cap — a hat
  6. field — a subject
  7. net — in sport
  8. mug — to rob
  9. mug — a cup
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. field — farmland
  13. club — a group
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. net — for catching
  17. wind — moving air
  18. net — after costs
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cap — a lid
  21. row — a line
  22. mug — a face
  23. club — for dancing
  24. cap — of ice

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