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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 120 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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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: tube · perch · craft · stem · race · file · cue · field

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. cue — a hint
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. race — a contest
  5. craft — boats
  6. perch — the fish
  7. race — humankind
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. race — the arms race
  10. tube — a container
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. cue — for pool
  13. cue — a signal
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. file — a tool
  16. file — a document
  17. stem — to come from
  18. tube — the underground
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. field — for sport
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. craft — a skill
  23. field — farmland
  24. file — a line of people

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