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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. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. wax — to grow
  8. bark — to shout
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a great time
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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