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

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. spring — the season
  5. branch — a division
  6. clip — a video
  7. ground — the earth
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. swing — in golf
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. ground — a position
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. swing — music
  17. spring — a coil
  18. ground — crushed
  19. bark — to shout
  20. swing — to play on
  21. pass — a permit
  22. rest — what's left
  23. clip — to cut
  24. spring — of water

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