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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. stem — to come from
  7. ground — the earth
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. ground — crushed
  10. chip — to eat
  11. ground — a position
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. kid — child
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. chip — for betting
  21. content — the amount
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. kid — to tease
  24. leaves — of a tree

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