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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: can · trunk · season · patient · ground · sharp · field · hide

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. can — a tin
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. ground — crushed
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. sharp — clever
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. ground — a position
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. can — to be able to
  12. field — farmland
  13. can — a tin
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. field — for sport
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — of the year
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. field — a subject
  24. ground — the earth

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