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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — farmland
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. toast — bread
  5. fine — high quality
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. fine — all right
  8. charge — in control
  9. charge — electricity
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. charge — a price
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. cold — not warm
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — for light
  18. stem — to come from
  19. field — for sport
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. chip — for betting
  22. chip — to eat
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. fine — a penalty

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