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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: mine · patient · spring · rock · bore · fork · field · suit

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  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. spring — a coil
  2. mine — for digging
  3. spring — the season
  4. suit — in cards
  5. rock — music
  6. field — a subject
  7. rock — a stone
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. fork — in a road
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. spring — of water
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bore — to tire
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. bore — to drill
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. suit — clothes
  20. suit — to fit
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. field — farmland
  23. fork — a garden tool
  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