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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. march — music
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. dip — to sink
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. pound — a weight
  9. spring — of water
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. stem — to come from
  13. spring — the season
  14. lean — to bend
  15. content — happy
  16. lean — thin
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. march — the month
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. march — the month
  24. spring — a coil

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