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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. rock — music
  3. stem — to come from
  4. pop — soda
  5. field — for sport
  6. club — for dancing
  7. club — for golf
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. pop — to visit
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. race — the arms race
  14. field — a subject
  15. rock — a stone
  16. club — a group
  17. race — a contest
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bark — to shout
  21. pop — music
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. race — humankind
  24. rock — to move gently

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