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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. swing — in golf
  5. swing — music
  6. content — the amount
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. track — a path
  9. stem — to come from
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. season — in sport
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. staff — employees
  14. staff — employees
  15. season — of the year
  16. track — to keep track
  17. saw — the tool
  18. content — happy
  19. swing — to play on
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. saw — the tool
  23. staff — a stick
  24. track — a song

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