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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: prune · patient · field · hand · drill · lean · toast · pass

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. hand — in cards
  3. field — a subject
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. prune — to trim
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. lean — to bend
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — army training
  10. hand — help
  11. field — farmland
  12. lean — thin
  13. pass — a permit
  14. field — for sport
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. prune — to trim
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. toast — bread
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. drill — a practice
  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