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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: band · degree · patient · fork · prune · bark · foot · stock

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. stock — goods
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. degree — temperature
  9. prune — to trim
  10. stock — shares
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. foot — a measure
  13. prune — to trim
  14. degree — from a university
  15. band — a music group
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. bark — to shout
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. band — a ring
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. fork — in a road

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