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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: field · date · pop · craft · stem · chest · face · stick

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. chest — of your body
  3. field — for sport
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. pop — to visit
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. chest — of your body
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. craft — a skill
  13. pop — music
  14. chest — a box
  15. face — to confront
  16. stem — to come from
  17. craft — boats
  18. field — a subject
  19. date — the fruit
  20. face — part of the head
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. face — to point toward
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. field — farmland

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