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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bark · tube · key · face · branch · bass · cold · stem

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  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. key — for a lock
  2. face — part of the head
  3. face — to confront
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. bass — low music
  9. bark — to shout
  10. key — in music
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. tube — a container
  15. bass — the fish
  16. stem — to come from
  17. face — to point toward
  18. cold — not warm
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. key — the most important part
  21. tube — the underground
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. tube — in a tire
  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