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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 124 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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. stock — shares
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. stock — goods
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. prune — to trim
  10. pass — a permit
  11. field — for sport
  12. saw — the tool
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — a subject
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. saw — the tool
  21. stem — to come from
  22. prune — to trim
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. prune — the fruit

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