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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. ball — a dance
  3. mug — a cup
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. land — a country
  6. mug — to rob
  7. row — to paddle
  8. stem — to come from
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. firm — decided
  12. land — ground
  13. land — to come down
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. shower — rain
  16. firm — steady
  17. content — happy
  18. ball — a great time
  19. content — the amount
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. mug — a face
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. shower — to wash
  24. row — a line

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