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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. mug — a cup
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. mark — a trace
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. tear — from crying
  8. snap — to click
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. stem — to come from
  13. content — happy
  14. board — to get on
  15. mug — to rob
  16. content — the amount
  17. mug — a face
  18. mark — a grade
  19. tear — to rip
  20. tear — from crying
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. board — a committee

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