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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. lean — to bend
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. bound — tied together
  5. club — for golf
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. field — farmland
  8. club — for dancing
  9. degree — temperature
  10. bound — obliged
  11. club — a group
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. lean — thin
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. degree — an amount
  16. rash — hasty
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. field — a subject
  20. bound — certain
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. degree — from a university
  23. rash — a series
  24. wave — of the sea

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