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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. cold — an illness
  3. rock — a stone
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. rock — music
  6. bound — certain
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. squash — the sport
  13. stem — to come from
  14. bound — obliged
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bark — to shout
  17. content — happy
  18. rest — what's left
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. rest — a break
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. content — the amount
  23. cold — not warm
  24. rock — to move gently

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