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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stem — to come from
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. prune — to trim
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. wax — to grow
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. spring — the season
  13. spring — a coil
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. field — farmland
  16. bass — low music
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. field — for sport
  19. bass — the fish
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. field — a subject
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bass — the instrument

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