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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. tear — from crying
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. stem — to come from
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. pound — a weight
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bark — to shout
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. tear — to rip
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bat — the animal
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. bat — in an idiom

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