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

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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 — to come from
  3. bore — to tire
  4. march — music
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. degree — an amount
  8. court — for sport
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. court — of a king
  12. degree — from a university
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. vault — a safe
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. bark — to shout
  19. march — the month
  20. court — of law
  21. march — the month
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. bore — to drill
  24. degree — temperature

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