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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. chest — of your body
  3. prune — to trim
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. fine — high quality
  8. stem — to come from
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. swing — in golf
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. chest — of your body
  19. content — happy
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. lie — to recline
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — music
  24. chest — a box

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