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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: field · kick · content · present · degree · coach · bark · branch

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. degree — from a university
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — happy
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. bark — to shout
  10. field — for sport
  11. branch — a division
  12. degree — temperature
  13. field — a subject
  14. degree — an amount
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. kick — in football
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. present — the time now
  19. present — there
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. present — a gift
  23. field — farmland
  24. content — videos and posts

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