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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.

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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: tube · root · cell · hide · field · stand · bear · object

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. root — the cause
  3. field — farmland
  4. field — for sport
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. root — of a word
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tube — a container
  10. bear — the animal
  11. tube — the underground
  12. object — to protest
  13. field — a subject
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. object — a thing
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. cell — in biology
  19. object — an aim
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cell — a phone
  22. root — of a plant
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — on your feet

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