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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bear · bat · calf · court · stock · bark · club · row

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. stock — shares
  6. bat — the animal
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. club — for dancing
  10. bear — the animal
  11. stock — goods
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bear — the animal
  15. club — a group
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. court — of law
  19. club — for golf
  20. court — for sport
  21. bark — to shout
  22. row — a line
  23. court — of a king
  24. calf — of the leg

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