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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. current — of water
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. kid — child
  7. field — a subject
  8. capital — a city
  9. key — for a lock
  10. plane — a tool
  11. stand — to bear
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. capital — money
  14. field — for sport
  15. key — in music
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. stem — to come from
  19. key — the most important part
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. current — electric
  22. current — happening now
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  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