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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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Word bank
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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: bowl · stick · file · cell · bark · present

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. present — the time now
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. present — there
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. file — a document
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cell — a phone
  13. present — a gift
  14. cell — in biology
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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