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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: ground · stem · pitcher · cell · mate · bound · bark · pit

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bound — tied together
  3. mate — to breed
  4. pit — a hole
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bound — obliged
  7. mate — a partner
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bound — certain
  15. ground — a position
  16. pit — in a race
  17. cell — a phone
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. cell — in biology
  21. mate — a friend
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. ground — crushed

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