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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: board · deal · date · wake · pitcher · straw · fork · bark

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. board — to get on
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. date — the fruit
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. deal — to handle
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. board — a committee
  19. fork — in a road
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. bark — to shout
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. fork — to eat with

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