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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: patient · field · wake · deal · court · arm · tear · straw

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. wake — a trail
  5. court — of law
  6. tear — from crying
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. court — for sport
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. deal — to handle
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. field — farmland
  17. court — of a king
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. field — for sport
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. tear — to rip
  24. field — a subject

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