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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: hand · patient · stem · clip · field · bay · plane · cap

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. hand — help
  3. field — farmland
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. field — for sport
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cap — a hat
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. clip — to cut
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. hand — in cards
  15. stem — to come from
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. clip — for paper
  18. field — a subject
  19. cap — of ice
  20. plane — a tool
  21. clip — a video
  22. cap — a lid
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. plane — an aircraft

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