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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: patient · charge · fork · fine · perch · field · tear · roll

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  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. field — farmland
  2. tear — from crying
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. fine — all right
  5. charge — in control
  6. roll — a cake
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. charge — a price
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. charge — electricity
  12. fork — in a road
  13. roll — a list
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. perch — the fish
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. field — for sport
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. fine — high quality
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. tear — from crying
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  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