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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: stem · bound · bat · field · fan · fork · key · wax

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. key — the most important part
  7. bound — tied together
  8. bound — certain
  9. stem — to come from
  10. fork — in a road
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. key — for a lock
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — farmland
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. key — in music
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. field — for sport
  24. bound — obliged

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