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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. wake — a trail
  5. last — final
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. charge — a price
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. stem — to come from
  13. bound — tied together
  14. charge — electricity
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bound — obliged
  17. last — to go on
  18. shower — rain
  19. last — finally
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bound — certain
  22. perch — the fish
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. shower — to wash

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