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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: content · row · spell · fan · net · bay · stem · spring

  1. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. spell — magic
  6. row — a line
  7. content — happy
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spell — a short time
  11. content — the amount
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. net — for catching
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. stem — to come from
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — of water
  19. spell — letters
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — in sport
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. row — to paddle

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