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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. craft — boats
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. spring — of water
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. bark — to shout
  12. stock — shares
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. spring — a coil
  15. stock — goods
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. craft — a skill
  19. pound — a weight
  20. spring — the season
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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