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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. mark — a grade
  3. pop — soda
  4. field — for sport
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. cue — a hint
  7. pop — to visit
  8. field — a subject
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. clip — a video
  12. kick — in football
  13. scale — size or range
  14. stem — to come from
  15. pop — music
  16. clip — for paper
  17. field — farmland
  18. clip — to cut
  19. cue — for pool
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. scale — in music
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. cue — a signal
  24. scale — for weighing

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