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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — the season
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. can — a tin
  8. field — for sport
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. plane — a tool
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. cap — of ice
  14. spring — of water
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. cap — a hat
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. cap — a lid
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. can — to be able to
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. field — a subject
  24. can — a tin

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