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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. march — the month
  3. last — to go on
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. march — the month
  6. last — final
  7. bound — obliged
  8. row — a line
  9. last — finally
  10. root — of a plant
  11. row — to paddle
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. root — the cause
  14. bound — tied together
  15. stem — to come from
  16. lie — to recline
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. root — of a word
  19. march — music
  20. content — happy
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bound — certain

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