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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
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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 · game · suit · pop · branch · field · scale · date

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. field — a subject
  3. date — the fruit
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. scale — in music
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. branch — a division
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. field — farmland
  11. pop — music
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. field — for sport
  14. pop — to visit
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. scale — size or range
  19. pop — soda
  20. suit — in cards
  21. game — wild animals
  22. suit — clothes
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. suit — to fit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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