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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. field — for sport
  3. board — to get on
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — a subject
  6. land — a country
  7. net — after costs
  8. land — ground
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. content — happy
  11. stem — to come from
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. band — a ring
  19. land — to come down
  20. board — a committee
  21. net — in sport
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. band — a music group

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