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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: club · wax · patient · pitch · field · rush · bark · scale

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. rush — hurry
  5. field — for sport
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. club — for dancing
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. wax — to grow
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — completely
  12. scale — in music
  13. field — a subject
  14. bark — to shout
  15. scale — size or range
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. club — for golf
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. field — farmland
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. wax — in the ear

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