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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: court · bark · stem · wake · mine · branch · staff · fan

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. staff — a stick
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. court — for sport
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. court — of law
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. branch — a division
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. staff — employees
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. staff — employees
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. stem — to come from
  22. court — of a king
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. mine — for digging

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