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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. stem — to come from
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. present — a gift
  6. drill — the tool
  7. craft — boats
  8. land — to come down
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. content — happy
  11. craft — a skill
  12. land — ground
  13. drill — a practice
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. land — a country
  16. present — there
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. present — the time now
  19. stock — goods
  20. content — the amount
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. drill — army training

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