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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.

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: stem · field · wake · degree · hide · calf · root · march

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — farmland
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. degree — an amount
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. wake — a trail
  7. root — of a plant
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. stem — to come from
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. root — the cause
  13. root — of a word
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. march — the month
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — temperature
  19. field — a subject
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. march — the month
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. march — music

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