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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: patient · row · stem · tube · key · march · field · track

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. row — a line
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. tube — the underground
  7. march — the month
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. key — in music
  11. track — to keep track
  12. key — for a lock
  13. march — music
  14. field — farmland
  15. row — to paddle
  16. stem — to come from
  17. key — the most important part
  18. march — the month
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. track — a song
  22. tube — a container
  23. track — a path
  24. field — for sport

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