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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: bark · squash · row · ball · ground · board · press · trunk

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. press — to push
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. bark — to shout
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. ground — crushed
  7. ground — the earth
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. ball — a great time
  13. board — a committee
  14. press — newspapers
  15. press — a publisher
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. ball — a dance
  19. ground — a position
  20. squash — to crush
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. squash — the sport
  23. board — to get on
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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