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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. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — a stem cell
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. stem — to come from
  4. file — a document
  5. ball — a dance
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. ball — a great time
  12. kick — in football
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. suit — clothes
  16. wax — to grow
  17. bark — to shout
  18. suit — to fit
  19. suit — in cards
  20. file — a line of people
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. file — a tool

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