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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: spring · face · plane · chair · cell · field · stem · sharp

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. cell — a phone
  4. face — part of the head
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. spring — of water
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spring — a coil
  10. field — for sport
  11. face — to confront
  12. plane — a tool
  13. field — farmland
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. face — to point toward
  16. stem — to come from
  17. field — a subject
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. spring — the season
  22. chair — a leader
  23. cell — in biology
  24. plane — in geometry

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