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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 116 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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. dip — to sink
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. stem — to come from
  7. pit — a hole
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. ground — crushed
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. content — the amount
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. pit — in a race
  14. content — happy
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. ground — a position
  17. wax — to grow
  18. fork — in a road
  19. ground — the earth
  20. cell — a phone
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. stem — a stem cell

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