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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.

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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: current · capital · bark · stock · degree · stem · drill · pass

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. capital — a city
  4. current — happening now
  5. current — of water
  6. stem — to come from
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — army training
  10. degree — from a university
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. pass — a permit
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. degree — temperature
  15. stock — goods
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. capital — money
  18. current — electric
  19. degree — an amount
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. bark — to shout
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. stock — shares
  24. bark — of a tree

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