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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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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: stick · wound · bat · racket · kid · fine · bank · bark

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. fine — all right
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. kid — to tease
  8. bank — of a river
  9. kid — child
  10. bark — to shout
  11. bank — for money
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fine — high quality
  18. bat — the animal
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. bank — for money
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. racket — for tennis

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