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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — a big letter
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. cue — a hint
  4. stem — to come from
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. row — to paddle
  10. capital — a city
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. court — of law
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cue — for pool
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. cue — a signal
  17. capital — money
  18. court — for sport
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. court — of a king
  21. foot — a measure
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. bark — to shout
  24. row — a line

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