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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. ground — the earth
  3. bass — the fish
  4. ground — crushed
  5. field — a subject
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. field — for sport
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. bark — to shout
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. band — a ring
  13. pass — a permit
  14. band — a music group
  15. prune — to trim
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. field — farmland
  20. prune — to trim
  21. ground — a position
  22. bass — low music
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. stem — of a plant

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