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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: bark · fall · stem · kick · staff · kid · band · current

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. fall — to drop
  3. staff — a stick
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — to tease
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a music group
  8. kick — in football
  9. stem — to come from
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. fall — to drop
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. kid — child
  16. band — a ring
  17. current — of water
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. current — happening now
  20. fall — the season
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. staff — employees
  23. current — electric
  24. staff — employees

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