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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. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. current — electric
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — for money
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. saw — the tool
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. degree — from a university
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. bark — to shout
  15. degree — an amount
  16. current — of water
  17. current — happening now
  18. hand — help
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bank — of a river
  21. march — music
  22. march — the month
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. march — the month

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