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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 120 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: club · tube · kid · mine · coach · mouse · bark · bank

  1. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. club — for golf
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. bank — of a river
  8. bank — for money
  9. mine — for digging
  10. tube — a container
  11. kid — child
  12. tube — the underground
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. kid — to tease
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. club — a group
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. bank — for money
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. bark — to shout

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