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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 120 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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. content — the amount
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. content — happy
  5. capital — a city
  6. mark — a trace
  7. stem — to come from
  8. chip — for betting
  9. field — farmland
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. field — for sport
  14. rush — hurry
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. field — a subject
  17. capital — money
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. mark — a grade
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. chip — to eat
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. capital — a big letter

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