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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 116 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: bark · club · sharp · hand · bass · press · rash · wound

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. wound — an injury
  3. press — a publisher
  4. wound — an injury
  5. press — to push
  6. hand — in cards
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. club — for dancing
  9. sharp — clever
  10. club — for golf
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. hand — help
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. rash — hasty
  15. press — newspapers
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bass — low music
  19. club — a group
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. bark — to shout

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