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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. wax — to grow
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. hand — help
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — a subject
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. kid — child
  10. object — an aim
  11. object — a thing
  12. object — to protest
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. hand — in cards
  20. field — farmland
  21. kid — to tease
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pound — a weight

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