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

Word bank: pitch · club · pound · bark · last · cell

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. pound — a weight
  3. cell — in biology
  4. pitch — completely
  5. bark — to shout
  6. club — for golf
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. last — to go on
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. last — final
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. club — for dancing
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. cell — a phone
  15. club — a group
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pitch — a sales talk

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