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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. press — a publisher
  4. content — the amount
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. shower — rain
  11. fall — the season
  12. wound — an injury
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. press — newspapers
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. press — to push
  18. wound — an injury
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — the underground
  21. content — happy
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — to drop
  24. hide — to keep secret

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