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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. stem — to come from
  3. content — the amount
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. row — a line
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. spell — magic
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. spell — letters
  13. mug — a cup
  14. clip — to cut
  15. season — in sport
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. mug — a face
  19. spell — a short time
  20. season — of the year
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — a video
  23. content — happy
  24. mug — to rob

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