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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. land — to come down
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. firm — a company
  6. lean — to bend
  7. firm — decided
  8. stem — to come from
  9. land — ground
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lean — thin
  13. wind — moving air
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. root — of a plant
  16. land — a country
  17. firm — steady
  18. root — of a word
  19. root — the cause
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. bark — to shout
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bowl — to roll

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