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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 120 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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. land — ground
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — in sport
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. land — to come down
  8. current — happening now
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. current — electric
  11. current — of water
  12. content — happy
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. season — of the year
  15. content — the amount
  16. stem — to come from
  17. club — for dancing
  18. last — finally
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. land — a country
  21. club — for golf
  22. last — final
  23. club — a group
  24. content — videos and posts

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