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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. hand — in cards
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stock — shares
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. content — the amount
  10. track — a path
  11. hand — help
  12. kid — child
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. content — happy
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. plane — a tool
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. track — to keep track
  21. track — a song
  22. stock — goods
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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