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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: ground · patient · wind · field · perch · stand · bound · foot

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ground — crushed
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bound — tied together
  7. stand — to bear
  8. foot — a measure
  9. ground — the earth
  10. field — a subject
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. field — for sport
  15. ground — a position
  16. bound — obliged
  17. perch — the fish
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bound — certain
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. field — farmland
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. patient — a sick person

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