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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: wind · date · band · pitcher · bark · mine · stick · staff

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. band — a music group
  7. band — a ring
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. staff — employees
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. mine — for digging
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. wind — moving air
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. staff — employees
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. date — the fruit
  24. staff — a stick

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