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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 124 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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. stem — to come from
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. degree — temperature
  5. rule — government
  6. rock — music
  7. degree — an amount
  8. rule — a law
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. face — to point toward
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. field — for sport
  13. face — to confront
  14. field — farmland
  15. rock — a stone
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. court — for sport
  18. ball — a dance
  19. ball — a great time
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. court — of law
  22. court — of a king
  23. degree — from a university
  24. face — part of the head

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