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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: wave · stem · chest · pass · patient · field · roll · last

  1. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. pass — a permit
  3. roll — a cake
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. chest — of your body
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. field — a subject
  9. last — to go on
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. roll — a list
  14. last — final
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. chest — of your body
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. last — finally
  21. chest — a box
  22. stem — to come from
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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