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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. tear — to rip
  3. band — a ring
  4. tear — from crying
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. band — a music group
  8. field — a subject
  9. fall — the season
  10. field — farmland
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. tear — from crying
  13. fall — to drop
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — crushed
  20. field — for sport
  21. stem — to come from
  22. ground — the earth
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. fall — to drop

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