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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. wake — a trail
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bark — to shout
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. sharp — clever

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