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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. cap — a hat
  4. bass — low music
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. rule — a law
  7. content — happy
  8. capital — money
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. capital — a city
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. rule — government
  16. plane — a tool
  17. stem — to come from
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. content — the amount
  20. cap — of ice
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. rash — hasty
  23. cap — a lid
  24. rash — a series

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