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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: chip · foot · stem · field · rush · mouse · ground · perch

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. ground — the earth
  3. perch — the fish
  4. rush — hurry
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — for sport
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. ground — a position
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. stem — to come from
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. field — farmland
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — for betting

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