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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 big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  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 — of a plant
  2. club — for dancing
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. tube — a container
  6. last — to go on
  7. club — for golf
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. tube — the underground
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. club — a group
  13. field — for sport
  14. last — final
  15. last — finally
  16. field — a subject
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. hand — in cards
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. hand — help
  22. field — farmland
  23. stem — a stem cell
  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