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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: bark · root · cell · snap · pitcher · fine · date · bound

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. root — of a word
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. snap — to click
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bound — certain
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. date — the fruit
  9. cell — in biology
  10. fine — high quality
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. root — of a plant
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bark — to shout
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. cell — a phone
  19. bound — obliged
  20. root — the cause
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. fine — all right
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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