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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 116 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: content · wound · field · charge · straw · stick · saw · patient

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. charge — a price
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. field — a subject
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. saw — the tool
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. field — for sport
  13. content — happy
  14. saw — the tool
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. content — the amount
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. wound — an injury
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. charge — electricity
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  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