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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. branch — a division
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — a subject
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. toast — bread
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bulb — for light
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. field — for sport
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. root — of a plant
  15. root — of a word
  16. stem — to come from
  17. wax — to grow
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bulb — for light
  24. root — the cause

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