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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. fall — to drop
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. mate — a friend
  6. bore — to tire
  7. stand — to bear
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. shower — to wash
  11. fall — to drop
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. stem — to come from
  14. fall — the season
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. pound — a weight
  17. mate — a partner
  18. bore — to drill
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. shower — rain
  24. bark — to shout

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