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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: bound · ruler · drill · saw · patient · field · face · straw

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. field — a subject
  4. drill — army training
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. drill — the tool
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. bound — certain
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. face — part of the head
  11. face — to confront
  12. bound — tied together
  13. saw — the tool
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. field — farmland
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bound — obliged
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. drill — a practice
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. field — for sport

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