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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 116 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 big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  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. stem — of a plant
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. track — a path
  4. march — the month
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. spell — a short time
  9. track — a song
  10. spell — magic
  11. spell — letters
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. track — to keep track
  14. stem — to come from
  15. branch — a division
  16. march — the month
  17. bark — to shout
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. march — music
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. rash — a series
  23. rash — hasty
  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