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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: perch · capital · object · fine · wake · club · stem · field

  1. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — all right
  5. perch — the fish
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — a group
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. object — an aim
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. object — a thing
  13. club — for dancing
  14. wake — a trail
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. field — farmland
  18. capital — money
  19. capital — a city
  20. object — to protest
  21. stem — to come from
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. stem — a stem cell

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