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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. stem — to come from
  5. lean — thin
  6. content — happy
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lean — to bend
  9. content — the amount
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. cap — of ice
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. bear — the animal
  14. key — the most important part
  15. cap — a hat
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. key — in music
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bat — the animal
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. key — for a lock
  23. cap — a lid
  24. lie — to recline

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