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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: wake · stem · pitcher · stock · row · bat · bank · bark

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. bat — the animal
  3. stock — shares
  4. bank — for money
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. bank — for money
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. stock — goods
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. stem — to come from
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bank — of a river
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. row — a line
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. wake — a trail

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