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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: bark · present · arm · cold · swing · bank · season · root

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. root — of a plant
  4. present — the time now
  5. bank — for money
  6. present — a gift
  7. root — of a word
  8. season — of the year
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. season — in sport
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cold — an illness
  13. bank — for money
  14. bark — to shout
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. swing — music
  17. root — the cause
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. cold — not warm
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. bank — of a river
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — in golf

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