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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 116 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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. content — happy
  4. firm — decided
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. mug — a cup
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. pitch — completely
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. rash — a series
  11. content — the amount
  12. mug — to rob
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. rash — hasty
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. stem — to come from
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. firm — a company
  19. firm — steady
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. pass — a permit
  24. pass — to spend time

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