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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. pit — a hole
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. staff — a stick
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. pit — in a race
  8. file — a tool
  9. stem — to come from
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. content — the amount
  14. pound — a weight
  15. content — happy
  16. deal — to handle
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. staff — employees
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. staff — employees
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a line of people

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