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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 120 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: field · dip · bound · sharp · hide · swing · patient · mug

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. bound — certain
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. swing — to play on
  7. mug — to rob
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bound — obliged
  10. sharp — clever
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. field — for sport
  14. swing — in golf
  15. field — farmland
  16. swing — music
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. mug — a cup
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. bound — tied together
  21. dip — to sink
  22. field — a subject
  23. mug — a face
  24. patient — a sick person

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