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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 116 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
468
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: rash · court · bowl · field · stem · cell · mug · net

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. field — for sport
  4. rash — a series
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. cell — a phone
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — farmland
  10. mug — to rob
  11. net — for catching
  12. court — of law
  13. net — in sport
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. mug — a cup
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. cell — in biology
  19. net — after costs
  20. court — for sport
  21. mug — a face
  22. court — of a king
  23. stem — to come from
  24. stem — of a plant

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