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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: club · wake · pitcher · scale · stand · trunk · row · bark

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. club — a group
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. scale — size or range
  9. wake — a trail
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. club — for dancing
  13. stand — to bear
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. row — a line
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. row — to paddle
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. scale — in music
  24. bark — to shout

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