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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. board — to get on
  4. saw — the tool
  5. face — to confront
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. content — the amount
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mark — a trace
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. face — to point toward
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. stem — to come from
  17. saw — the tool
  18. row — a line
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. face — part of the head
  21. board — a committee
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. content — happy
  24. row — to paddle

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