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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. content — happy
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. kid — child
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. capital — money
  7. rest — a break
  8. vault — a safe
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — what's left
  13. stem — to come from
  14. can — a tin
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. can — to be able to
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. content — the amount
  23. kid — to tease
  24. capital — a city

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