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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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468
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: season · mark · scale · racket · field · last · stem · rash

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. stem — to come from
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. season — in sport
  5. scale — in music
  6. season — of the year
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. mark — a trace
  11. rash — hasty
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. rash — a series
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. field — a subject
  17. field — for sport
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. field — farmland
  20. scale — size or range
  21. last — finally
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. last — to go on
  24. last — final

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