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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 116 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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. field — for sport
  7. stand — to bear
  8. field — a subject
  9. bound — tied together
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. court — for sport
  12. wound — an injury
  13. wound — an injury
  14. field — farmland
  15. board — to get on
  16. bound — certain
  17. court — of law
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. content — happy
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. content — the amount
  22. bound — obliged
  23. board — a committee
  24. court — of a king

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