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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. net — for catching
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. pop — music
  6. stem — to come from
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. content — the amount
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. pop — soda
  16. net — in sport
  17. pop — to visit
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. net — after costs
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. content — videos and posts

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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