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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. kick — in football
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. bank — for money
  8. kid — child
  9. cold — an illness
  10. branch — a division
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. bank — of a river
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. cold — not warm
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. bank — for money
  21. pound — a weight
  22. kid — to tease
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. pound — to hit hard

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