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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: hand · bank · swing · bark · mine · track

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. hand — in cards
  4. mine — for digging
  5. swing — in golf
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bank — of a river
  8. track — a path
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. track — a song
  11. bank — for money
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. bank — for money
  15. hand — help
  16. bark — to shout
  17. track — to keep track
  18. swing — music

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