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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 120 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: wave · rock · hand · field · pop · patient · cell · ball

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. hand — in cards
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. field — a subject
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. pop — music
  9. rock — music
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — for sport
  14. pop — soda
  15. ball — a dance
  16. hand — help
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pop — to visit
  19. cell — in biology
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. rock — a stone
  22. ball — a great time
  23. cell — a phone
  24. rock — to move gently

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