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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. pop — to visit
  3. content — the amount
  4. cap — of ice
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. cap — a hat
  7. can — a tin
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. content — happy
  10. perch — the fish
  11. can — a tin
  12. pop — music
  13. date — the fruit
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. shower — to wash
  16. stem — to come from
  17. cap — a lid
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. pop — soda
  20. can — to be able to
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. shower — rain
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. perch — for a bird

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