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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. capital — a city
  3. tube — a container
  4. capital — money
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. can — to be able to
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. march — the month
  11. rest — what's left
  12. can — a tin
  13. tube — the underground
  14. rest — what's left
  15. dip — to sink
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. rest — a break
  18. march — music
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. can — a tin
  22. bark — to shout
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. march — the month

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