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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pit · bear · bass · last · field · patient · staff · content

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bear — the animal
  3. content — the amount
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. pit — a hole
  7. field — for sport
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bass — low music
  10. field — farmland
  11. bass — the fish
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. field — a subject
  16. last — to go on
  17. staff — employees
  18. last — finally
  19. staff — employees
  20. content — happy
  21. last — final
  22. staff — a stick
  23. pit — in a race
  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