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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. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. pop — music
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. degree — from a university
  9. pop — to visit
  10. bulb — for light
  11. rest — a break
  12. degree — temperature
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. march — music
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. rest — what's left
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pop — soda
  21. degree — an amount
  22. rash — hasty
  23. branch — a division
  24. rash — a series

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