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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  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 — to come from
  2. content — the amount
  3. field — farmland
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. toast — bread
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. shower — rain
  14. saw — the tool
  15. shower — to wash
  16. club — for golf
  17. content — happy
  18. club — a group
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. field — for sport
  22. club — for dancing
  23. saw — the tool
  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