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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 120 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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. fork — in a road
  7. dip — to sink
  8. row — a line
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. stem — to come from
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. content — the amount
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. bat — the animal
  16. row — to paddle
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. content — happy

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