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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 116 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: sharp · bear · branch · bark · rest · last · content · pass

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. sharp — clever
  4. rest — what's left
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. rest — a break
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. last — to go on
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. last — finally
  13. last — final
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — the animal
  19. content — happy
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. branch — a division
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. content — the 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