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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 120 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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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: deal · track · patient · face · field · club · key · chest

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. field — a subject
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. key — in music
  6. track — to keep track
  7. key — for a lock
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. club — for dancing
  10. key — the most important part
  11. face — to confront
  12. track — a path
  13. chest — a box
  14. field — for sport
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. face — part of the head
  18. chest — of your body
  19. track — a song
  20. club — a group
  21. face — to point toward
  22. field — farmland
  23. deal — to handle
  24. chest — of your body

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