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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. spell — magic
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. content — happy
  7. can — to be able to
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. squash — the sport
  11. spell — letters
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stock — goods
  14. stock — shares
  15. can — a tin
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. squash — to crush
  18. firm — a company
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. content — the amount
  21. sharp — clever
  22. can — a tin
  23. firm — decided
  24. spell — a short time

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