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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: craft · bark · season · ground · trunk · club · swing · stock

  1. The ________________ market has crashed.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — shares
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. swing — music
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. swing — to play on
  6. club — for golf
  7. stock — goods
  8. craft — a skill
  9. club — for dancing
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. swing — in golf
  12. ground — a position
  13. club — a group
  14. season — in sport
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — of the year
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. bark — to shout
  19. craft — boats
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. ground — crushed
  24. ground — the earth

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