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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. chest — a box
  3. last — to go on
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. content — the amount
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. spring — of water
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spring — a coil
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. last — final
  12. band — a music group
  13. firm — a company
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — to come from
  16. content — happy
  17. firm — decided
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — of your body
  20. spring — the season
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. firm — steady
  23. last — finally
  24. band — a ring

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