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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: bass · dip · field · bound · roll · board · patient · land

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. board — a committee
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. field — for sport
  6. bass — the fish
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. bound — tied together
  9. land — a country
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. land — ground
  13. land — to come down
  14. bass — low music
  15. roll — a list
  16. board — to get on
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. roll — a cake
  20. bound — obliged
  21. field — a subject
  22. bound — certain
  23. field — farmland
  24. dip — to sink

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