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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: patient · bore · rush · key · land · field · saw · firm

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. saw — the tool
  4. land — a country
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. key — in music
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. bore — to drill
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. field — for sport
  12. land — to come down
  13. key — for a lock
  14. firm — steady
  15. bore — to tire
  16. firm — a company
  17. rush — hurry
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. field — a subject
  20. field — farmland
  21. key — the most important part
  22. firm — decided
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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