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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. saw — the tool
  4. field — farmland
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. rock — music
  7. rock — a stone
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. stem — to come from
  10. band — a music group
  11. band — a ring
  12. saw — the tool
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. field — a subject
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. field — for sport
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. stem — a stem cell

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