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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. dip — to sink
  4. field — farmland
  5. deal — to handle
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. content — happy
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. last — to go on
  10. field — for sport
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. stem — to come from
  13. last — finally
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. last — final
  17. field — a subject
  18. content — the amount
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. wax — to grow
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. deal — a big deal

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