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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bass — low music
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. hand — help
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bass — the fish
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. stand — to bear
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. field — a subject
  16. last — final
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. last — finally
  21. last — to go on
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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