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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. pound — a weight
  4. bear — the animal
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. roll — a cake
  7. lean — to bend
  8. capital — money
  9. present — a gift
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. lean — thin
  13. bear — the animal
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. stem — to come from
  20. capital — a city
  21. roll — a list
  22. present — the time now
  23. present — there
  24. cabinet — ministers

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