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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 116 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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — a stick
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — tied together
  7. scale — size or range
  8. stock — shares
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. staff — employees
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. stem — to come from
  15. bound — certain
  16. hand — help
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bark — to shout
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. scale — in music
  23. stock — goods
  24. hand — in cards

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