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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: mine · field · cap · stem · squash · season · safe · date

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — for digging
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. field — a subject
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. squash — the sport
  10. cap — a hat
  11. season — of the year
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. date — the fruit
  16. stem — to come from
  17. squash — to crush
  18. season — in sport
  19. cap — of ice
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. field — farmland
  23. cap — a lid
  24. date — on the calendar

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