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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 120 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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. craft — a skill
  4. bear — the animal
  5. scale — size or range
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. kid — to tease
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. spell — letters
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. spell — magic
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. spell — a short time
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. craft — boats
  19. kid — child
  20. scale — in music
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. stem — to come from

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