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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 116 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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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 · deal · mine · content · lean · press · bat · mate

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. mate — to breed
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. bat — the animal
  6. mate — a partner
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mate — a friend
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. stem — to come from
  13. lean — thin
  14. press — a publisher
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. content — happy
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. press — to push
  19. deal — to handle
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. lean — to bend
  22. content — the amount
  23. mine — for digging
  24. stem — a stem cell

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