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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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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: snap · capital · stem · bark · drill · calf · track · rest

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. bark — to shout
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. stem — to come from
  6. track — to keep track
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. rest — what's left
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. drill — a practice
  12. track — a path
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. capital — a city
  17. drill — army training
  18. snap — to click
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. capital — money
  21. rest — what's left
  22. drill — the tool
  23. track — a song
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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