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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. board — a committee
  3. wax — to grow
  4. board — to get on
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. plane — a tool
  7. spell — magic
  8. rock — music
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. spell — letters
  11. spell — a short time
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. field — a subject
  16. rock — a stone
  17. mark — a trace
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. mark — a grade
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. field — farmland
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wax — for sculpting

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