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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. hand — help
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. toast — bread
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. clip — a video
  9. hand — in cards
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. clip — for paper
  15. content — the amount
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stand — to bear
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. clip — to cut
  21. content — happy
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. hand — part of the body

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