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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. swing — music
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. bound — obliged
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. content — happy
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a hole
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. march — music
  12. row — a line
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. stem — to come from
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. bound — certain
  17. march — the month
  18. stock — goods
  19. row — to paddle
  20. swing — in golf
  21. bound — tied together
  22. swing — to play on
  23. march — the month
  24. stock — shares

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