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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: stem · club · march · bulb · last · mouse · bark · prune

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — the month
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. bark — to shout
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. last — final
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. bulb — for light
  12. club — for golf
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. march — music
  16. last — finally
  17. club — a group
  18. club — for dancing
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bulb — for light
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. stem — to come from
  24. last — to go on

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