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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. field — for sport
  3. game — a match
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. bore — to drill
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. stem — to come from
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. current — happening now
  13. cap — a lid
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. bore — to tire
  16. current — of water
  17. current — electric
  18. wound — an injury
  19. field — a subject
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. cap — of ice
  23. game — wild animals
  24. cap — a hat

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