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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: straw · stem · wax · tube · field · mark · spell · scale

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. field — farmland
  3. tube — a container
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. wax — to grow
  9. field — a subject
  10. scale — size or range
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. field — for sport
  13. mark — a trace
  14. scale — in music
  15. spell — letters
  16. tube — the underground
  17. spell — a short time
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. spell — magic
  23. stem — to come from
  24. mark — a grade

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