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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: club · craft · bark · firm · branch · degree · row · arm

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. degree — an amount
  3. club — a group
  4. club — for dancing
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. craft — a skill
  7. degree — temperature
  8. degree — from a university
  9. club — for golf
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. bark — to shout
  12. craft — boats
  13. branch — a division
  14. firm — a company
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. row — a line
  18. firm — steady
  19. firm — decided
  20. row — to paddle
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. branch — of a bank

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