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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. stem — to come from
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. rash — hasty
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. staff — employees
  12. pound — a weight
  13. fall — the season
  14. staff — employees
  15. fall — to drop
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. rash — a series
  22. bark — to shout
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. kick — in football

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