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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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. degree — from a university
  4. craft — a skill
  5. craft — boats
  6. degree — temperature
  7. court — of a king
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. branch — a division
  15. degree — an amount
  16. snap — to click
  17. court — of law
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. dip — to sink
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. court — for sport
  22. bark — to shout
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. perch — for a bird

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