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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. face — to point toward
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. rule — government
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. bark — to shout
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. rash — hasty
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. face — to confront
  14. rule — a law
  15. rash — a series
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wound — an injury
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. wound — an injury
  23. face — part of the head
  24. rash — on the skin

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