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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. track — a song
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. content — happy
  7. cell — in biology
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. ground — crushed
  10. stand — to bear
  11. rock — a stone
  12. cell — a phone
  13. rock — music
  14. ground — the earth
  15. bark — to shout
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. content — the amount
  18. track — a path
  19. stem — to come from
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. track — to keep track
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. stand — on your feet

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