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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. key — in music
  3. stem — to come from
  4. content — the amount
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. root — of a plant
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. root — of a word
  12. content — happy
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — an illness
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chest — of your body
  19. key — the most important part
  20. chest — a box
  21. key — for a lock
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. root — the cause
  24. pitcher — a jug

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