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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. stem — to come from
  4. rush — hurry
  5. bark — to shout
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. sharp — clever
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. date — the fruit
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. wind — moving air
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. sharp — with an edge

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