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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. stem — to come from
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. field — a subject
  7. bass — low music
  8. land — a country
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. field — farmland
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. pitch — completely
  14. cap — a lid
  15. land — ground
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. land — to come down
  19. cap — a hat
  20. bass — the fish
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. field — for sport
  24. cap — of ice

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