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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.

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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: lie · spring · kid · stem · field · pit · press · stand

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. lie — to recline
  4. stem — to come from
  5. field — a subject
  6. spring — the season
  7. press — to push
  8. stand — to bear
  9. pit — a hole
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. field — for sport
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. kid — to tease
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. press — newspapers
  18. press — a publisher
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. field — farmland
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. kid — child

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