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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: coach · branch · pop · stem · degree · field · bark · rule

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. pop — soda
  3. stem — to come from
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. field — a subject
  6. bark — to shout
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. degree — an amount
  10. pop — music
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rule — government
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. pop — to visit
  15. field — for sport
  16. rule — a law
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. field — farmland
  19. degree — temperature
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. branch — a division
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. stem — of a plant

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