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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. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. wound — an injury
  3. date — the fruit
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — for sport
  7. rash — hasty
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. field — farmland
  11. root — the cause
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — of a plant
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. rash — a series
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. branch — a division
  23. bore — to tire
  24. branch — of a tree

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