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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  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. track — to keep track
  2. content — the amount
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. board — a committee
  5. season — of the year
  6. season — in sport
  7. content — happy
  8. board — to get on
  9. mug — a face
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. mug — to rob
  13. cell — a phone
  14. kid — to tease
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. track — a path
  18. stem — to come from
  19. cell — in biology
  20. track — a song
  21. mug — a cup
  22. kid — child
  23. season — to add flavour
  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