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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: bore · field · patient · dip · race · ball · chair · land

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. bore — to drill
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. chair — a leader
  6. ball — a great time
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. land — a country
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. race — the arms race
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. race — humankind
  16. field — a subject
  17. land — to come down
  18. field — farmland
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. race — a contest
  21. bore — to tire
  22. dip — to sink
  23. field — for sport
  24. land — ground

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