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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: capital · firm · bark · degree · pass · spring · prune · rest

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. rest — what's left
  3. firm — decided
  4. pass — a permit
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. spring — of water
  8. firm — a company
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. capital — a city
  11. bark — to shout
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. rest — a break
  14. degree — temperature
  15. degree — from a university
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. degree — an amount
  19. firm — steady
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. prune — to trim
  22. spring — a coil
  23. capital — money
  24. spring — the season

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