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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wound · field · file · kid · bound · key · mark · patient

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  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. kid — to tease
  2. field — for sport
  3. file — a tool
  4. bound — certain
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. key — in music
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mark — a grade
  9. file — a line of people
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. key — the most important part
  14. field — farmland
  15. file — a document
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bound — obliged
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. wound — an injury
  20. mark — a trace
  21. key — for a lock
  22. bound — tied together
  23. kid — child
  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