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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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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. cell — in biology
  3. field — for sport
  4. cell — a phone
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. suit — to fit
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. bat — the animal
  9. field — farmland
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. rash — a series
  14. rash — hasty
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. stem — to come from
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. field — a subject
  23. suit — clothes
  24. suit — in cards

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