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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: bark · present · arm · cold · swing · bank

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bank — for money
  5. swing — music
  6. present — a gift
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. present — the time now
  10. bank — for money
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. bark — to shout
  13. swing — in golf
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. present — there
  16. swing — to play on
  17. cold — not warm
  18. cold — an illness

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