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

Word bank: pound · rock · bark · cold · rest · stem · patient · tube

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. rest — what's left
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. cold — an illness
  6. rest — what's left
  7. tube — a container
  8. rest — a break
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. stem — to come from
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. rock — music
  17. rock — a stone
  18. tube — the underground
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. bark — to shout
  21. pound — a weight
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. cold — not warm

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