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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. scale — size or range
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. scale — in music
  7. firm — steady
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. drill — army training
  10. stem — to come from
  11. mine — for digging
  12. row — a line
  13. dip — to sink
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. row — to paddle
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. firm — decided
  20. drill — the tool
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. drill — a practice
  23. firm — a company
  24. stem — a stem cell

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