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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. roll — a cake
  3. content — happy
  4. roll — a list
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. object — an aim
  9. mug — a face
  10. court — for sport
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. object — to protest
  13. stem — to come from
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. object — a thing
  19. court — of a king
  20. mug — a cup
  21. content — the amount
  22. mug — to rob
  23. court — of law
  24. bat — the animal

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