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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: face · bank · band · rash · pop · content · stem · bark

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. band — a music group
  3. bark — to shout
  4. rash — a series
  5. pop — to visit
  6. bank — for money
  7. face — part of the head
  8. bank — of a river
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. stem — to come from
  11. face — to point toward
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bank — for money
  14. band — a ring
  15. content — the amount
  16. pop — soda
  17. content — happy
  18. face — to confront
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. pop — music
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. rash — hasty
  24. stem — of a plant

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