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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. object — a thing
  3. field — for sport
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. firm — decided
  6. spell — magic
  7. spell — letters
  8. fall — to drop
  9. clip — a video
  10. stem — to come from
  11. fall — to drop
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. field — farmland
  14. object — an aim
  15. clip — for paper
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. firm — steady
  18. firm — a company
  19. object — to protest
  20. clip — to cut
  21. fall — the season
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. spell — a short time
  24. stem — of a plant

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