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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. stock — goods
  4. clip — a video
  5. bass — the fish
  6. land — a country
  7. field — farmland
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stock — shares
  14. vault — a safe
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — to come from
  17. land — ground
  18. land — to come down
  19. mark — a trace
  20. clip — for paper
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. mark — a grade
  23. clip — to cut
  24. field — for sport

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