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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: stock · mate · object · track · pop · field · saw · cell

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. cell — a phone
  3. track — a song
  4. field — a subject
  5. track — a path
  6. mate — a partner
  7. saw — the tool
  8. track — to keep track
  9. field — for sport
  10. cell — in biology
  11. object — an aim
  12. pop — soda
  13. pop — music
  14. saw — the tool
  15. pop — to visit
  16. mate — to breed
  17. stock — shares
  18. object — a thing
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. mate — a friend
  24. object — to protest

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