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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: rock · bank · degree · snap · prune · jam · scale · bark

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. prune — to trim
  4. snap — to click
  5. scale — size or range
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. degree — an amount
  8. bark — to shout
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — of a river
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. bank — for money
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. degree — from a university
  16. prune — to trim
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. rock — a stone
  19. degree — temperature
  20. scale — in music
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. scale — for weighing

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