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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stem · content · ground · saw · game · row · calf · object

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — wild animals
  5. ground — a position
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. game — a match
  8. object — a thing
  9. object — an aim
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. row — a line
  13. saw — the tool
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. row — to paddle
  16. object — to protest
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. content — the amount
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. content — happy
  23. saw — the tool
  24. ground — the earth

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