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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: rest · trunk · date · patient · plane · game · fine · field

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. date — the fruit
  6. rest — a break
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. fine — all right
  9. game — a match
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. plane — a tool
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. rest — what's left
  15. field — a subject
  16. field — for sport
  17. fine — high quality
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. field — farmland
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. game — wild animals
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. rest — what's left

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