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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 120 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: branch · row · bark · face · mark · lean · sharp · dip

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. lean — to bend
  3. bark — to shout
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. mark — a grade
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. row — to paddle
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. mark — a trace
  15. lean — thin
  16. dip — to sink
  17. face — to point toward
  18. face — to confront
  19. sharp — clever
  20. face — part of the head
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. row — a line
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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