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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. stem — to come from
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wake — a trail
  6. club — for dancing
  7. march — music
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — of the year
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. firm — decided
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. march — the month
  14. firm — a company
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. club — for golf
  17. content — happy
  18. content — the amount
  19. club — a group
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. chest — a box
  23. firm — steady
  24. march — the month

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