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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — farmland
  3. content — happy
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. content — the amount
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. staff — employees
  12. land — to come down
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. staff — a stick
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. field — for sport
  18. staff — employees
  19. land — a country
  20. stem — to come from
  21. land — ground
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. mouse — for a computer

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