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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. swing — to play on
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. mine — for digging
  9. swing — music
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. chair — a leader
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. field — a subject
  15. bank — for money
  16. bank — for money
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bank — of a river
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — farmland
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. fine — all right
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. swing — in golf

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