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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: spring · content · spell · last · pound · straw · bay · stem

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. last — to go on
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. content — the amount
  6. spell — letters
  7. last — finally
  8. spell — magic
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. spell — a short time
  11. stem — to come from
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. spring — the season
  19. spring — of water
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. content — happy
  22. pound — a weight
  23. spring — a coil
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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