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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  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. bark — of a tree
  2. rash — a series
  3. root — the cause
  4. degree — from a university
  5. row — a line
  6. rash — hasty
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. march — the month
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. root — of a word
  12. present — the time now
  13. present — there
  14. degree — temperature
  15. tube — a container
  16. row — to paddle
  17. degree — an amount
  18. root — of a plant
  19. march — music
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. bark — to shout
  22. present — a gift
  23. tube — the underground
  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