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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 116 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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. degree — from a university
  3. rock — a stone
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. bank — for money
  6. field — a subject
  7. bark — to shout
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. rock — music
  10. rash — a series
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. field — farmland
  13. rash — hasty
  14. bank — of a river
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — goods
  17. snap — to click
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bank — for money
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. field — for sport
  22. degree — temperature
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. degree — an amount

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