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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 124 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. stem — to come from
  3. pit — a hole
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bark — to shout
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. scale — in music
  9. pit — in a race
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. fall — the season
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. track — to keep track
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. sharp — clever
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. scale — size or range
  20. fall — to drop
  21. track — a path
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. chair — a leader
  24. chair — a professorship

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