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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. game — wild animals
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. wax — to grow
  8. stem — to come from
  9. game — a match
  10. pop — music
  11. mark — a trace
  12. bark — to shout
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. cap — a hat
  19. pop — soda
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. cap — a lid
  22. mark — a grade
  23. cap — of ice
  24. mark — to pay attention

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