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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. stem — to come from
  4. band — a ring
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. band — a music group
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. rest — what's left
  13. bark — to shout
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wound — an injury
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. stand — to bear
  19. rest — a break
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. snap — to click
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. wax — to grow

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