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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · bark · staff · cabinet · stock · cold · arm · file

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. file — a document
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cold — not warm
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. branch — a division
  10. file — a line of people
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. staff — a stick
  13. stock — goods
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. staff — employees
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. file — a tool
  21. stock — shares
  22. staff — employees
  23. bark — to shout
  24. arm — part of the body

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