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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kick · firm · net · stem · bark · charge · tear · band

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. net — in sport
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. tear — to rip
  5. stem — to come from
  6. charge — a price
  7. net — after costs
  8. tear — from crying
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. charge — electricity
  11. tear — from crying
  12. firm — steady
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. net — for catching
  16. band — a music group
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. firm — a company
  19. bark — to shout
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. kick — in football
  22. firm — decided
  23. band — a ring
  24. charge — in control

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