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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: pass · kick · current · kid · field · stem · tear · saw

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. pass — a permit
  3. field — for sport
  4. stem — to come from
  5. pass — to spend time
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. current — happening now
  9. field — farmland
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. kid — child
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. tear — from crying
  18. current — of water
  19. field — a subject
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. tear — to rip
  22. current — electric
  23. kick — in football
  24. saw — the tool

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