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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. stem — to come from
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. pitch — completely
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. vault — a safe
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. game — wild animals
  14. wax — to grow
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. bark — to shout
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. game — a match
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. stem — of a plant

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