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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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. wake — a trail
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. land — ground
  10. cell — a phone
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. bat — the animal
  15. stem — to come from
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. land — to come down
  19. cell — in biology
  20. vault — a safe
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. land — a country
  24. bark — to shout

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