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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: cold · can · field · patient · bowl · cabinet · present · straw

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. field — for sport
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. present — there
  8. field — farmland
  9. present — a gift
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. field — a subject
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. present — the time now
  21. cold — not warm
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — to be able to

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