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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. face — to confront
  4. stock — shares
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. face — to point toward
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. board — a committee
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. stock — goods
  13. board — to get on
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. row — a line
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. row — to paddle
  18. field — a subject
  19. stem — to come from
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. face — part of the head
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — farmland

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