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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. field — for sport
  3. capital — money
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. field — farmland
  6. root — of a word
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. root — of a plant
  10. stand — to bear
  11. band — a ring
  12. mark — a trace
  13. field — a subject
  14. mark — a grade
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. band — a music group
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. root — the cause
  19. shower — rain
  20. capital — a city
  21. shower — to wash
  22. saw — the tool
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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