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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: cap · safe · court · jam · face · field · stem · degree

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. face — part of the head
  3. degree — an amount
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. stem — to come from
  7. degree — from a university
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a hat
  10. court — of a king
  11. court — for sport
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. cap — a lid
  14. court — of law
  15. degree — temperature
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. face — to confront
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. field — for sport
  21. field — farmland
  22. face — to point toward
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. jam — in traffic

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