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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: stand · pit · bark · rule · club · bat

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. pit — a hole
  3. stand — to bear
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. bark — to shout
  7. rule — a law
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. bat — the animal
  11. club — for dancing
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. pit — in a race
  15. rule — government
  16. club — for golf
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. pit — a fruit stone

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