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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 116 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: club · bark · wake · stick · cell · band

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. club — for golf
  5. band — a music group
  6. wake — a trail
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. club — for dancing
  10. cell — in biology
  11. club — a group
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. bark — to shout
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. cell — a phone
  18. band — a ring

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