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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 120 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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. craft — boats
  3. stem — to come from
  4. court — of law
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. drill — army training
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. court — for sport
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. band — a music group
  17. band — a ring
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. drill — a practice
  20. craft — a skill
  21. bark — to shout
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. court — of a king

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