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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: saw · coach · temple · patient · field · land · game · calf

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. saw — the tool
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. land — to come down
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. saw — the tool
  10. field — a subject
  11. game — wild animals
  12. land — ground
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. field — for sport
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. game — a match
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. land — a country

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