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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 · degree · leaves · key · fine · stock · root · club

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. bark — to shout
  3. degree — from a university
  4. key — in music
  5. key — the most important part
  6. stock — shares
  7. degree — an amount
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. key — for a lock
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — a group
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. fine — high quality
  18. root — of a word
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. root — of a plant
  21. degree — temperature
  22. club — for golf
  23. root — the cause
  24. fine — all right

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