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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. spring — a coil
  3. field — for sport
  4. spring — of water
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mug — a cup
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. field — a subject
  10. mug — a face
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. band — a ring
  13. spring — the season
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. field — farmland
  16. band — a music group
  17. fine — high quality
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. fine — all right
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. fine — a penalty

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