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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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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: patient · pass · lie · wind · staff · straw · content · field

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. staff — employees
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. content — happy
  7. field — a subject
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. staff — a stick
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. lie — to recline
  16. wind — moving air
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. staff — employees
  19. pass — a permit
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. field — farmland
  23. field — for sport
  24. wind — moving air

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