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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. stem — to come from
  3. face — to point toward
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. face — part of the head
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bulb — for light
  8. field — for sport
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. face — to confront
  11. object — to protest
  12. object — an aim
  13. bound — tied together
  14. field — farmland
  15. field — a subject
  16. bulb — for light
  17. stock — shares
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bound — obliged
  20. stock — goods
  21. bound — certain
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. object — a thing
  24. stem — of a plant

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