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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. scale — in music
  6. drill — army training
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. cold — not warm
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bulb — for light
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. stock — shares
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bulb — for light
  15. drill — a practice
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. drill — the tool
  21. sharp — clever
  22. stem — to come from
  23. content — happy
  24. content — the amount

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