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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: field · patient · roll · rush · bound · net · ground · trunk

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. net — in sport
  3. roll — a list
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. ground — a position
  6. rush — hurry
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. ground — crushed
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. field — a subject
  11. bound — tied together
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. roll — a cake
  14. net — for catching
  15. bound — obliged
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. field — farmland
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. ground — the earth
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. field — for sport
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. net — after costs

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