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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 120 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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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: land · track · cap · season · leaves · sharp · stem · field

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. cap — a hat
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. cap — of ice
  7. stem — to come from
  8. land — ground
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. field — a subject
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. track — to keep track
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. track — a path
  17. field — for sport
  18. land — a country
  19. land — to come down
  20. sharp — clever
  21. cap — a lid
  22. season — in sport
  23. field — farmland
  24. season — of the year

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