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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. swing — to play on
  5. rule — a law
  6. bear — the animal
  7. stem — to come from
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. content — happy
  11. scale — in music
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. swing — music
  14. bear — the animal
  15. rule — government
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. root — of a word
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. root — of a plant
  21. swing — in golf
  22. scale — size or range
  23. root — the cause
  24. rule — to rule out

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