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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 120 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 · bark · pop · stock · cabinet · land · rash · rest

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  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. bark — to shout
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rest — a break
  5. rash — a series
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. pop — soda
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. pop — music
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. stock — shares
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. stock — goods
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. pop — to visit
  21. land — to come down
  22. rest — what's left
  23. cabinet — ministers
  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