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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 116 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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. mark — a grade
  6. content — happy
  7. chip — for betting
  8. stock — shares
  9. stock — goods
  10. last — to go on
  11. clip — to cut
  12. last — final
  13. stem — to come from
  14. mark — a trace
  15. clip — a video
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. wound — an injury
  18. last — finally
  19. chip — to eat
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. clip — for paper
  22. content — the amount
  23. wound — an injury
  24. stem — of a plant

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