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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. current — of water
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. drill — army training
  6. drill — a practice
  7. field — farmland
  8. capital — a city
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stand — to bear
  12. shower — to wash
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. field — for sport
  15. stem — to come from
  16. shower — rain
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. current — electric
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. drill — the tool
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. current — happening now
  23. capital — money
  24. dip — to sink

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