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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
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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: racket · spring · pound · march · field · stem · mouse · fall

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. field — farmland
  4. spring — a coil
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. spring — of water
  8. march — the month
  9. spring — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. field — a subject
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. pound — a weight
  15. field — for sport
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. fall — to drop
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. march — the month
  21. fall — the season
  22. stem — to come from
  23. march — music
  24. pound — for dogs

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