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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — for sport
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. ground — a position
  6. stock — shares
  7. object — an aim
  8. present — a gift
  9. present — the time now
  10. ground — the earth
  11. field — a subject
  12. object — a thing
  13. object — to protest
  14. branch — a division
  15. present — there
  16. ground — crushed
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. stock — goods

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