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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. court — of a king
  3. staff — employees
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. staff — a stick
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. field — a subject
  8. court — for sport
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. perch — the fish
  15. field — farmland
  16. staff — employees
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bass — low music
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. bass — the fish
  21. pass — a permit
  22. field — for sport
  23. cold — an illness
  24. court — of law

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