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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. bark — to shout
  3. cell — a phone
  4. foot — a measure
  5. land — ground
  6. mate — to breed
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. track — a song
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. land — a country
  12. cell — in biology
  13. kid — to tease
  14. stem — to come from
  15. mate — a partner
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. track — a path
  20. kid — child
  21. land — to come down
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. track — to keep track
  24. mate — a friend

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