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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: deal · cap · mine · capital · last · field · stem · jam

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — farmland
  4. last — final
  5. last — to go on
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. stem — to come from
  9. deal — to handle
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. field — a subject
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. capital — money
  16. last — finally
  17. mine — for digging
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. capital — a city
  21. cap — of ice
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. cap — a hat
  24. deal — an agreement

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