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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 124 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bass · cell · perch · firm · tear · field · hide · stem

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. firm — a company
  5. stem — to come from
  6. field — for sport
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bass — low music
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. perch — the fish
  12. tear — from crying
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. firm — decided
  15. cell — in biology
  16. field — a subject
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. firm — steady
  19. cell — a phone
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. tear — to rip
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. hide — to keep secret

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