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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: foot · roll · face · patient · lie · kid · fan · field

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. roll — a cake
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. face — to point toward
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. roll — a list
  11. face — part of the head
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. field — a subject
  16. field — farmland
  17. face — to confront
  18. kid — child
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. field — for sport
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. foot — a measure
  23. lie — to recline
  24. foot — part of the body

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