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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — to breed
  5. fall — to drop
  6. rash — a series
  7. content — happy
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. mate — a friend
  10. stem — to come from
  11. rash — hasty
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. fall — to drop
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. fall — the season
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. content — the amount
  18. bowl — a football final

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