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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. cap — of ice
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. swing — in golf
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. cold — an illness
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. swing — music
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. content — the amount
  11. cold — not warm
  12. scale — in music
  13. stem — to come from
  14. wake — a trail
  15. cap — a hat
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. content — happy
  19. scale — size or range
  20. cap — a lid
  21. swing — to play on
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. content — videos and posts

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