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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. stand — to bear
  3. scale — size or range
  4. march — the month
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. field — farmland
  7. club — for golf
  8. field — for sport
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. club — a group
  13. march — music
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. march — the month
  20. club — for dancing
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. field — a subject
  24. scale — in music

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