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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: bark · tear · club · kick · land · wound · rock · bulb

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. rock — a stone
  5. kick — in football
  6. bulb — for light
  7. wound — an injury
  8. club — for golf
  9. tear — to rip
  10. land — ground
  11. land — a country
  12. tear — from crying
  13. club — for dancing
  14. bark — to shout
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. rock — music
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. land — to come down
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. tear — from crying
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. club — a group

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