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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 120 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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. pitch — completely
  3. rule — a law
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. field — for sport
  8. field — farmland
  9. rule — government
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. field — a subject
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cell — in biology
  15. root — of a plant
  16. root — of a word
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. stem — to come from
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. root — the cause

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