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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: lean · squash · cold · field · patient · present · tube · ruler

  1. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. lean — to bend
  4. field — farmland
  5. lean — thin
  6. tube — the underground
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. cold — not warm
  9. field — a subject
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. present — there
  16. cold — an illness
  17. squash — to crush
  18. present — the time now
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. squash — the sport
  21. present — a gift
  22. field — for sport
  23. tube — a container
  24. ruler — for measuring

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