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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: trunk · staff · pitch · court · pitcher · race · bark · present

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. staff — employees
  3. court — of law
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. staff — employees
  6. present — there
  7. staff — a stick
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. race — a contest
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. pitch — completely
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. present — a gift
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. bark — to shout
  20. present — the time now
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. court — for sport
  23. race — humankind
  24. race — the arms race

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