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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: bear · bay · patient · last · track · field · rush · leaves

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  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. leaves — of a tree
  2. field — farmland
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. last — to go on
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. track — to keep track
  9. rush — hurry
  10. bear — the animal
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. field — for sport
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. last — final
  15. last — finally
  16. track — a song
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. track — a path
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  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