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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. fall — to drop
  3. current — happening now
  4. current — electric
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. field — for sport
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. pass — a permit
  12. game — a match
  13. field — a subject
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. shower — to wash
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. fall — to drop
  18. field — farmland
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. fall — the season
  22. game — wild animals
  23. shower — rain
  24. current — of water

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