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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. staff — employees
  4. row — to paddle
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. content — happy
  8. degree — an amount
  9. chip — to eat
  10. row — a line
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. content — the amount
  13. chip — for betting
  14. degree — from a university
  15. staff — a stick
  16. field — farmland
  17. stem — to come from
  18. staff — employees
  19. field — for sport
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. degree — temperature
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. field — a subject

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