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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. chip — for betting
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. face — part of the head
  8. ball — a great time
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. ball — a dance
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. stem — to come from
  14. face — to point toward
  15. field — farmland
  16. plane — a tool
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. face — to confront
  20. field — for sport
  21. chip — to eat
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. coach — a trainer

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