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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. sharp — clever
  3. bear — the animal
  4. can — a tin
  5. bear — the animal
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — for pool
  10. can — to be able to
  11. stem — to come from
  12. can — a tin
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. mine — for digging
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. cue — a hint
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. content — the amount

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