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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 ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. bark — to shout
  3. content — happy
  4. face — to confront
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. content — the amount
  9. stem — to come from
  10. cap — a lid
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. face — to point toward
  18. kick — in football
  19. cap — a hat
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. cap — of ice
  24. dip — to sink

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