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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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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — to shout
  4. capital — money
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — thin
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. object — to protest
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. clip — for paper
  15. stem — to come from
  16. clip — a video
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. object — an aim
  19. object — a thing
  20. capital — a city
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. patient — a sick person

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