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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: pound · cap · wake · present · stem · scale · racket · field

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. pound — a weight
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. cap — a lid
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. field — for sport
  7. cap — of ice
  8. wake — a trail
  9. present — a gift
  10. field — a subject
  11. present — the time now
  12. scale — size or range
  13. present — there
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. scale — in music
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stem — to come from
  22. cap — a hat
  23. field — farmland
  24. racket — for tennis

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