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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: rock · pop · ball · stem · band · root · bark · bound

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. band — a music group
  3. bark — to shout
  4. rock — music
  5. pop — music
  6. ball — a great time
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. stem — to come from
  9. bound — tied together
  10. pop — to visit
  11. bound — certain
  12. band — a ring
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. pop — soda
  15. root — of a plant
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. rock — a stone
  18. ball — a dance
  19. root — of a word
  20. root — the cause
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. bound — obliged
  24. band — a rubber band

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