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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: patient · arm · pound · mate · lie · drill · saw · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  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. field — for sport
  2. drill — army training
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. saw — the tool
  6. mate — a partner
  7. drill — the tool
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — to recline
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. mate — to breed
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. mate — a friend
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. drill — a practice
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. pound — a weight
  20. field — farmland
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. saw — the tool
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  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