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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 · shower · cabinet · face · clip · fan · field · pitcher

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. face — to point toward
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. field — for sport
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. face — part of the head
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — rain
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. clip — a video
  14. field — farmland
  15. clip — for paper
  16. clip — to cut
  17. field — a subject
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. shower — to wash
  24. face — to confront

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