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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. fall — to drop
  3. net — after costs
  4. fall — to drop
  5. field — for sport
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. bound — tied together
  8. snap — to click
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. net — for catching
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. net — in sport
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bound — certain
  15. foot — a measure
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. field — a subject
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stem — to come from
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. rush — hurry
  24. fall — the season

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