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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. mark — a grade
  3. bear — the animal
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. stem — to come from
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. clip — a video
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. clip — to cut
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. clip — for paper
  16. snap — to click
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. race — the arms race
  20. bear — the animal
  21. race — humankind
  22. bark — to shout
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. race — a contest

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