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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: mug · club · branch · wake · snap · pitch · bat · bark

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. club — a group
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. bat — the animal
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. mug — a cup
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. mug — a face
  13. club — for golf
  14. pitch — completely
  15. bark — to shout
  16. club — for dancing
  17. mug — to rob
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. wake — a trail
  23. branch — a division
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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