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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — a subject
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. mate — to breed
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. mug — to rob
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mug — a cup
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. field — farmland
  13. last — finally
  14. tear — from crying
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. last — to go on
  17. chip — for betting
  18. mug — a face
  19. mate — a friend
  20. last — final
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. chip — to eat
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. chip — in a computer

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