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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. field — farmland
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — the time now
  5. field — for sport
  6. ground — a position
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pit — in a race
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. wake — a trail
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. ground — the earth
  16. present — there
  17. board — to get on
  18. pit — a hole
  19. ground — crushed
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. field — a subject
  23. board — a committee
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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