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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: stick · wind · stem · fall · ground · arm · present · bark

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. present — there
  4. ground — the earth
  5. fall — to drop
  6. present — a gift
  7. present — the time now
  8. bark — to shout
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. wind — moving air
  16. ground — crushed
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. fall — the season
  20. stem — to come from
  21. ground — a position
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. wind — moving air

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