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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. firm — a company
  4. last — to go on
  5. content — happy
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. content — the amount
  12. stem — to come from
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. firm — decided
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. last — final
  17. band — a music group
  18. last — finally
  19. firm — steady
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. band — a ring
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. stem — a stem cell

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