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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ground · staff · pit · degree · rule · bark

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. ground — a position
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. degree — from a university
  5. rule — a law
  6. ground — the earth
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. staff — employees
  9. pit — in a race
  10. rule — government
  11. degree — an amount
  12. degree — temperature
  13. staff — employees
  14. ground — crushed
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bark — to shout
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. staff — a stick

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