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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. field — a subject
  3. pitch — completely
  4. present — a gift
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. present — the time now
  7. spell — a short time
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — an injury
  11. present — there
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. spell — letters
  16. bank — for money
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. field — farmland
  19. spell — magic
  20. field — for sport
  21. shower — to wash
  22. bank — of a river
  23. bank — for money
  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