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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: board · nail · snap · stem · field · bowl · key · patient

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. board — to get on
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. stem — to come from
  7. key — for a lock
  8. field — for sport
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. snap — to click
  11. field — farmland
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. board — a committee
  16. key — the most important part
  17. field — a subject
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. key — in music
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. nail — for a hammer

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