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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. stock — shares
  3. content — the amount
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stock — goods
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. tear — from crying
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. tear — from crying
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. content — happy
  16. pass — a permit
  17. cell — a phone
  18. stem — to come from
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. bear — the animal
  23. cell — in biology
  24. pass — to spend time

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