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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. can — to be able to
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. court — of law
  5. wound — an injury
  6. content — happy
  7. can — a tin
  8. court — of a king
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. track — a song
  12. court — for sport
  13. craft — a skill
  14. craft — boats
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. wound — an injury
  19. can — a tin
  20. track — to keep track
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. track — a path
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. content — the amount

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