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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: bulb · shower · wound · stand · bark · club · band · row

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. shower — rain
  3. band — a ring
  4. bulb — for light
  5. stand — to bear
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — an injury
  9. row — a line
  10. bulb — for light
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. club — for golf
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. club — for dancing
  18. shower — to wash
  19. club — a group
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. row — to paddle
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. bark — to shout
  24. stand — for spectators

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