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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: trunk · bear · bark · ground · cap · club · bat · pit

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. club — for dancing
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. ground — the earth
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bear — the animal
  8. club — a group
  9. bark — to shout
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — a lid
  13. club — for golf
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. bat — the animal
  17. ground — crushed
  18. pit — a hole
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. ground — a position
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. cap — of ice

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