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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. land — a country
  3. land — to come down
  4. content — happy
  5. lean — thin
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. mark — a trace
  9. root — of a word
  10. mark — a grade
  11. root — the cause
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. current — electric
  14. clip — for paper
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. clip — to cut
  17. content — the amount
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. current — of water
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. land — ground
  22. current — happening now
  23. clip — a video
  24. root — of a plant

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