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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 120 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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. present — a gift
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. field — for sport
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. rash — a series
  9. drill — a practice
  10. present — there
  11. field — a subject
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. drill — the tool
  14. rash — hasty
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. drill — army training
  17. vault — a safe
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. field — farmland
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. snap — to click
  22. present — the time now
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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