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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: bark · tube · coach · swing · wake · cell · stock · roll

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. wake — a trail
  3. stock — shares
  4. swing — to play on
  5. swing — in golf
  6. tube — a container
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. bark — to shout
  10. swing — music
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. cell — a phone
  13. stock — goods
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. roll — a cake
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. cell — in biology
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. roll — a list
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. tube — in a tire

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