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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. pop — soda
  4. bark — to shout
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. fall — the season
  8. bulb — for light
  9. clip — a video
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. fall — to drop
  14. craft — boats
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — in sport
  18. craft — a skill
  19. stem — to come from
  20. bulb — for light
  21. fall — to drop
  22. pop — to visit
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. net — for catching

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