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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 116 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 · track · root · band · bulb · sharp · tear · ball

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. root — of a word
  3. tear — from crying
  4. ball — a dance
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. root — the cause
  8. root — of a plant
  9. band — a music group
  10. track — a path
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. band — a ring
  15. sharp — clever
  16. bark — to shout
  17. ball — a great time
  18. track — to keep track
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bulb — for light
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. track — a song
  23. bulb — for light
  24. sharp — exactly

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