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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 · stick · wake · bound · drill · staff · leaves · field

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. field — farmland
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. staff — employees
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. drill — a practice
  7. drill — the tool
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. bound — obliged
  11. wake — a trail
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. staff — a stick
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. bound — certain
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. field — for sport
  20. field — a subject
  21. staff — employees
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. bound — tied together
  24. drill — army training

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