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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 120 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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. content — the amount
  4. press — a publisher
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. press — newspapers
  7. pit — a hole
  8. clip — a video
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. staff — a stick
  11. press — to push
  12. face — part of the head
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. staff — employees
  15. stem — to come from
  16. face — to confront
  17. clip — to cut
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. face — to point toward
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. clip — for paper
  23. pit — in a race
  24. staff — employees

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