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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 120 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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. field — for sport
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. cap — a hat
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. field — farmland
  8. cap — of ice
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. dip — to sink
  12. last — finally
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. bank — of a river
  16. stem — to come from
  17. capital — a city
  18. last — final
  19. bank — for money
  20. pound — a weight
  21. bank — for money
  22. cap — a lid
  23. capital — money
  24. field — a subject

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