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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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Word bank
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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: cabinet · fork · land · press · march · field · roll · patient

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. land — ground
  3. press — a publisher
  4. land — to come down
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. march — music
  9. field — a subject
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. march — the month
  14. land — a country
  15. field — farmland
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. fork — in a road
  19. march — the month
  20. roll — a list
  21. press — to push
  22. field — for sport
  23. roll — a cake
  24. press — newspapers

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