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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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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: ruler · content · patient · race · club · calf · field · cap

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. field — farmland
  3. content — the amount
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. race — the arms race
  7. cap — a hat
  8. field — for sport
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. content — happy
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cap — a lid
  15. race — a contest
  16. club — for dancing
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. field — a subject
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. race — humankind
  22. club — for golf
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. ruler — for measuring

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