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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. spell — a short time
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. lean — to bend
  7. saw — the tool
  8. band — a music group
  9. field — for sport
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. saw — the tool
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. field — a subject
  16. spell — magic
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stem — to come from
  19. band — a ring
  20. perch — the fish
  21. spell — letters
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. lean — thin
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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