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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. ball — a great time
  3. bark — to shout
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. ball — a dance
  6. pit — in a race
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. bound — obliged
  9. mine — for digging
  10. bound — tied together
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. bound — certain
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. chip — to eat
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. chip — for betting

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