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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: wind · lie · bat · field · degree · coach · firm · stem

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. field — for sport
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. field — a subject
  11. degree — an amount
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. firm — steady
  14. lie — to recline
  15. stem — to come from
  16. wind — moving air
  17. degree — temperature
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. degree — from a university
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. firm — decided
  22. firm — a company
  23. bat — the animal
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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