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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. pop — soda
  3. bat — the animal
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. pop — to visit
  6. pop — music
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. stand — to bear
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. bark — to shout
  17. wind — moving air
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. stem — to come from
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. stand — for spectators

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