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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 116 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. kid — to tease
  7. stem — to come from
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. content — the amount
  10. race — the arms race
  11. spell — a short time
  12. season — in sport
  13. shower — rain
  14. race — a contest
  15. shower — to wash
  16. race — humankind
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. kid — child
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. spell — letters
  22. season — of the year
  23. snap — to click
  24. content — happy

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