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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: pop · stock · spring · bowl · hide · degree · hand · bark

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. pop — soda
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. pop — to visit
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. spring — the season
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. degree — from a university
  12. stock — goods
  13. stock — shares
  14. degree — an amount
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. hand — help
  18. spring — of water
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. pop — music
  23. spring — a coil
  24. bark — to shout

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