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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. stem — to come from
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. rash — a series
  6. race — humankind
  7. can — a tin
  8. content — happy
  9. dip — to sink
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. rash — hasty
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. race — the arms race
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. can — to be able to
  16. can — a tin
  17. bark — to shout
  18. shower — to wash
  19. content — the amount
  20. shower — rain
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. race — a contest

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