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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. cold — not warm
  6. content — happy
  7. cold — an illness
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. press — to push
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. content — the amount
  14. stem — to come from
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. spring — a coil
  18. stand — to bear
  19. spring — of water
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. perch — the fish
  22. spring — the season
  23. press — newspapers
  24. press — a publisher

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