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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 124 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: season · pitcher · trunk · bark · court · fall · net · date

  1. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a tree
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. net — in sport
  5. fall — the season
  6. date — the fruit
  7. court — of a king
  8. net — after costs
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. season — in sport
  12. court — of law
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bark — to shout
  15. court — for sport
  16. fall — to drop
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. net — for catching
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. season — of the year

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