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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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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: board · ground · pitcher · pound · land · content · tear · stem

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. ground — a position
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. board — a committee
  6. tear — from crying
  7. ground — crushed
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. land — ground
  10. land — a country
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. content — the amount
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. ground — the earth
  19. stem — to come from
  20. board — to get on
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. land — to come down
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. content — happy

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