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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. content — happy
  3. field — a subject
  4. land — a country
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — to crush
  7. land — to come down
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. rush — hurry
  11. land — ground
  12. field — for sport
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. branch — a division
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. field — farmland
  22. content — the amount
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. stem — to come from

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