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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: trunk · patient · press · saw · key · march · field · object

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. march — music
  4. object — to protest
  5. field — a subject
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. key — in music
  8. saw — the tool
  9. press — to push
  10. saw — the tool
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. press — a publisher
  13. march — the month
  14. press — newspapers
  15. object — an aim
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. field — farmland
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. field — for sport
  21. key — for a lock
  22. march — the month
  23. object — a thing
  24. patient — a sick person

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