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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. face — part of the head
  5. mine — for digging
  6. staff — employees
  7. pop — to visit
  8. pop — music
  9. march — music
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. march — the month
  12. face — to point toward
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. staff — a stick
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. field — for sport
  18. bulb — for light
  19. march — the month
  20. field — farmland
  21. bulb — for light
  22. field — a subject
  23. pop — soda
  24. staff — employees

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