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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. file — a line of people
  3. present — there
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. file — a document
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — thin
  10. present — the time now
  11. file — a tool
  12. lean — to bend
  13. chip — to eat
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. pitch — completely
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. chip — for betting
  19. tear — from crying
  20. field — for sport
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. present — a gift
  23. field — a subject
  24. patient — a sick person

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