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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: wake · current · stem · row · bark · spell · degree · tube

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. degree — temperature
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. spell — a short time
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. current — happening now
  8. wake — a trail
  9. current — of water
  10. degree — from a university
  11. tube — the underground
  12. row — a line
  13. tube — a container
  14. bark — to shout
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. spell — magic
  18. spell — letters
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. stem — to come from
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. current — electric
  23. row — to paddle
  24. bark — of a tree

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