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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 116 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: track · club · rash · cold · fork · bark · bay · mark

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. My mare is ________________ in color.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. rash — hasty
  4. track — a song
  5. track — a path
  6. club — for dancing
  7. track — to keep track
  8. bark — to shout
  9. club — for golf
  10. club — a group
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. fork — in a road
  19. mark — a trace
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. rash — a series
  23. cold — an illness
  24. bay — a horse colour

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