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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: pitcher · prune · fall · ground · bark · game · bank · chair

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. bank — for money
  4. chair — a leader
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. ground — a position
  9. game — wild animals
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fall — to drop
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bank — for money
  16. bark — to shout
  17. prune — to trim
  18. ground — the earth
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. game — a match
  22. ground — crushed
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. chair — a professorship

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