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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. can — a tin
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. row — to paddle
  5. pitch — completely
  6. mark — a grade
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. perch — the fish
  9. can — to be able to
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. mark — a trace
  14. content — happy
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — not warm
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. stem — to come from
  21. cold — an illness
  22. content — the amount
  23. can — a tin
  24. row — a quarrel

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