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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — to shout
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. root — the cause
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. bat — the animal
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bulb — for light
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. root — of a word
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. prune — to trim
  24. field — for sport

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