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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — there
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. band — a ring
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. stem — to come from
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. field — for sport
  10. kick — in football
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. field — a subject
  14. bear — the animal
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. band — a music group
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. snap — to click
  19. bear — the animal
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. field — farmland
  24. present — the time now

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