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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: coach · temple · march · wind · patient · content · field · track

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. field — a subject
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. wind — moving air
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. march — music
  9. field — for sport
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. wind — moving air
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. track — a path
  15. march — the month
  16. march — the month
  17. content — the amount
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. content — happy
  21. field — farmland
  22. track — to keep track
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. track — a song

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