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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. field — farmland
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wake — a trail
  5. net — in sport
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. field — a subject
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. present — a gift
  10. net — after costs
  11. present — there
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. season — of the year
  14. present — the time now
  15. track — a song
  16. track — a path
  17. field — for sport
  18. season — in sport
  19. mine — for digging
  20. net — for catching
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. track — to keep track
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. stem — to come from

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