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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: wake · field · mark · bat · cell · root · stock · fine

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. field — for sport
  3. mark — a grade
  4. field — farmland
  5. mark — a trace
  6. cell — in biology
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. root — the cause
  9. stock — shares
  10. fine — high quality
  11. fine — all right
  12. wake — a trail
  13. bat — the animal
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. root — of a word
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. root — of a plant
  18. stock — goods
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. field — a subject
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. bat — for baseball

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