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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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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: patient · degree · bark · object · scale · cabinet · spring · pitcher

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. object — a thing
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. degree — an amount
  6. scale — size or range
  7. spring — the season
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. object — to protest
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. spring — a coil
  18. degree — temperature
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. spring — of water
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. scale — in music
  23. object — an aim
  24. degree — from a university

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