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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. drill — the tool
  3. hand — help
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. mug — to rob
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. stock — goods
  8. drill — army training
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. stock — shares
  11. stem — to come from
  12. hand — in cards
  13. cell — in biology
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. dip — to sink
  18. mug — a face
  19. mug — a cup
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — to shout
  22. drill — a practice
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. cell — a phone

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