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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. content — the amount
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. content — happy
  7. swing — in golf
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. row — to paddle
  10. stand — to bear
  11. swing — music
  12. date — the fruit
  13. swing — to play on
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. fine — all right
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. stem — to come from
  20. fine — high quality
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — a line
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. wake — a trail

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