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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 124 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. bound — certain
  6. band — a ring
  7. tear — from crying
  8. band — a music group
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. stem — to come from
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. ball — a dance
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. bark — to shout
  19. tear — from crying
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. bound — tied together
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. tear — to rip

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