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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: field · saw · mug · pop · patient · wind · shower · arm

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  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. wind — moving air
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. pop — to visit
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. mug — a face
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. saw — the tool
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. field — farmland
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. pop — music
  16. mug — a cup
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — to wash
  19. mug — to rob
  20. field — for sport
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. pop — soda
  23. wind — moving air
  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