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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 120 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: spring · race · bark · rock · prune · staff · root · wake

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. wake — a trail
  3. race — a contest
  4. staff — employees
  5. bark — to shout
  6. rock — music
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. race — the arms race
  9. spring — of water
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. staff — a stick
  13. root — the cause
  14. spring — a coil
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. rock — a stone
  17. spring — the season
  18. staff — employees
  19. race — humankind
  20. prune — to trim
  21. root — of a word
  22. prune — to trim
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. root — 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