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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
468
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 · fine · season · bat · rash · file · chest

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. chest — of your body
  3. file — a document
  4. fine — all right
  5. season — in sport
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — happy
  8. stem — to come from
  9. chest — a box
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. fine — high quality
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. bat — the animal
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — hasty
  20. file — a tool
  21. file — a line of people
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. chest — of your body
  24. fine — a penalty

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