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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. content — the amount
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. club — a group
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. club — for dancing
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. stem — to come from
  14. club — for golf
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. chest — of your body
  17. content — happy
  18. bound — certain
  19. chest — a box
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bound — obliged
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. bound — tied together

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