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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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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: stem · press · lash · bowl · cell · field · key · mouse

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. stem — to come from
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. field — for sport
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. key — in music
  10. press — to push
  11. cell — in biology
  12. field — a subject
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. cell — a phone
  15. press — a publisher
  16. key — for a lock
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. field — farmland
  24. press — newspapers

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