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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. content — the amount
  3. perch — the fish
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. clip — for paper
  8. stem — to come from
  9. lean — thin
  10. lean — to bend
  11. content — happy
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. board — a committee
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. hand — help
  18. bulb — for light
  19. hand — in cards
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. clip — to cut
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. clip — a video
  24. board — to get on

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