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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. rest — what's left
  5. mate — a friend
  6. content — the amount
  7. stem — to come from
  8. bore — to drill
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. bore — to tire
  11. content — happy
  12. mate — a partner
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mate — to breed
  16. fork — in a road
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. rest — what's left
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — letters
  21. cold — an illness
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. spell — magic
  24. bore — gave birth

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