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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 120 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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. field — farmland
  6. net — in sport
  7. field — a subject
  8. net — after costs
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — money
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. branch — a division
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — hasty
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. field — for sport
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. foot — a measure
  21. stem — to come from
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. net — for catching
  24. rash — a series

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