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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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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: track · capital · pound · stem · lie · chest · lean · bark

  1. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. lie — to recline
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. track — to keep track
  9. lean — thin
  10. stem — to come from
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. chest — a box
  17. capital — money
  18. track — a path
  19. pound — a weight
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. track — a song
  22. capital — a city
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bark — to shout

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