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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. bark — to shout
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. swing — in golf
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. pop — to visit
  7. march — the month
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. rash — a series
  13. march — the month
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. march — music
  16. swing — to play on
  17. swing — music
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. pop — soda
  20. rash — hasty
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. hide — to keep secret

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