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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.

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: safe · last · leaves · rest · field · stem · bat · mine

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. field — a subject
  4. stem — to come from
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. last — finally
  10. last — to go on
  11. rest — what's left
  12. bat — the animal
  13. field — for sport
  14. rest — a break
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. mine — for digging
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. field — farmland
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. last — final
  24. bat — for baseball

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