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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. shower — to wash
  3. shower — rain
  4. mug — a face
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. chest — of your body
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. bark — to shout
  14. chest — of your body
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — for light
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. mug — to rob
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. stem — to come from
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. chest — a box

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