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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 116 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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. court — for sport
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. spell — magic
  5. branch — a division
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. stem — to come from
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. wax — to grow
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. kick — in football
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. field — a subject
  19. spell — a short time
  20. field — for sport
  21. court — of a king
  22. spell — letters
  23. court — of law
  24. wax — for sculpting

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