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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  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. cell — a phone
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. cap — a lid
  8. field — a subject
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. fork — in a road
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. cap — of ice
  14. cell — in biology
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. cap — a hat
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. bat — the animal
  19. dip — to sink
  20. field — farmland
  21. stem — to come from
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. fork — a garden tool
  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