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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. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. field — farmland
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. kick — in football
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. field — for sport
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. wax — to grow
  20. field — a subject
  21. branch — a division
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. kick — a thrill

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