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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
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: stem · court · scale · land · row · charge · field · stick

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of law
  3. field — a subject
  4. charge — in control
  5. land — to come down
  6. land — a country
  7. field — farmland
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. scale — in music
  10. charge — a price
  11. land — ground
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. court — of a king
  14. field — for sport
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. row — to paddle
  17. row — a line
  18. charge — electricity
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. scale — size or range
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — to come from
  24. row — a quarrel

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