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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 116 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: fan · chair · spring · stem · kick · field · bore · track

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bore — to drill
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. field — a subject
  7. track — a path
  8. spring — a coil
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. field — for sport
  11. track — to keep track
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. kick — in football
  14. track — a song
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. spring — the season
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. stem — to come from
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. spring — of water
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. bore — to tire
  24. field — farmland

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