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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 · mouse · fork · swing · field · mate · game · root

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. swing — to play on
  3. root — of a word
  4. game — a match
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. swing — music
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. field — a subject
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. root — the cause
  12. mate — a friend
  13. root — of a plant
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. fork — in a road
  16. mate — to breed
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. field — for sport
  20. swing — in golf
  21. game — wild animals
  22. field — farmland
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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