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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.

Make a worksheet

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: calf · degree · trunk · fall · stem · court · bark · current

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bark — to shout
  3. current — electric
  4. degree — temperature
  5. fall — to drop
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. current — of water
  8. court — for sport
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. fall — to drop
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. court — of law
  16. stem — to come from
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. fall — the season
  21. current — happening now
  22. degree — from a university
  23. court — of a king
  24. stem — a stem cell

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