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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cell — a phone
  3. present — there
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. content — happy
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. present — the time now
  12. present — a gift
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. cap — a lid
  16. mine — for digging
  17. cap — a hat
  18. stem — to come from
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. cell — in biology
  23. content — the amount
  24. cap — of ice

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