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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. present — the time now
  8. field — farmland
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. net — in sport
  12. rush — hurry
  13. present — a gift
  14. field — for sport
  15. bark — to shout
  16. net — for catching
  17. net — after costs
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. present — there
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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