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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. track — to keep track
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. stem — to come from
  7. net — after costs
  8. content — the amount
  9. content — happy
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. track — a song
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. net — for catching
  18. track — a path

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