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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. shower — rain
  3. content — happy
  4. pop — soda
  5. stem — to come from
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. present — the time now
  8. pop — music
  9. file — a document
  10. content — the amount
  11. key — for a lock
  12. court — for sport
  13. present — a gift
  14. key — in music
  15. court — of a king
  16. file — a line of people
  17. court — of law
  18. file — a tool
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. present — there
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. key — the most important part
  24. shower — to wash

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