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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.

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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. tear — from crying
  3. rest — what's left
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. rest — a break
  6. stem — to come from
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. content — happy
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. tear — to rip
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. chair — a leader
  16. rest — what's left
  17. tear — from crying
  18. jam — a tight spot

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