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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 120 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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — a tin
  4. court — for sport
  5. track — a song
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. firm — decided
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. clip — for paper
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. track — a path
  12. stem — to come from
  13. land — a country
  14. clip — a video
  15. clip — to cut
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — of law
  18. track — to keep track
  19. firm — a company
  20. land — ground
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. firm — steady
  23. land — to come down
  24. stem — a stem cell

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