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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: field · tear · chair · current · file · patient · ground · hide

  1. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. field — for sport
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. current — electric
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. ground — the earth
  8. current — of water
  9. tear — from crying
  10. file — a tool
  11. field — a subject
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. ground — a position
  16. file — a document
  17. ground — crushed
  18. chair — a leader
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. file — a line of people
  22. field — farmland
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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