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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. field — for sport
  4. kick — in football
  5. field — farmland
  6. clip — a video
  7. scale — size or range
  8. land — ground
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. land — a country
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. field — a subject
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. drill — a practice
  16. clip — to cut
  17. drill — the tool
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. clip — for paper
  21. land — to come down
  22. drill — army training
  23. vault — a safe
  24. patient — a sick person

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