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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. current — happening now
  3. stem — to come from
  4. court — for sport
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. content — happy
  9. content — the amount
  10. chest — of your body
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. current — electric
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. fall — to drop
  15. chest — of your body
  16. current — of water
  17. fall — to drop
  18. chest — a box
  19. fall — the season
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. court — of a king
  22. court — of law
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. cabinet — ministers

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