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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: branch · roll · fork · calf · lash · degree · wound · bark

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  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. calf — a young animal
  3. wound — an injury
  4. degree — temperature
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fork — in a road
  18. degree — from a university
  19. roll — a cake
  20. roll — a list
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. bark — to shout
  23. branch — a division
  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