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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. capital — money
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. lean — to bend
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. plane — a tool
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. capital — a city
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. field — a subject
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. field — for sport
  21. lean — thin
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. stem — to come from
  24. capital — a big letter

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