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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. branch — a division
  5. bark — to shout
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wake — a trail
  11. wax — to grow
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. stem — to come from
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. hide — to keep secret

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