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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: wind · bark · stock · current · foot · key · prune · pitcher

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. foot — a measure
  7. current — electric
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — to shout
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. stock — shares
  13. current — happening now
  14. key — in music
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. wind — moving air
  17. current — of water
  18. wind — moving air
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. key — for a lock
  21. prune — to trim
  22. key — the most important part
  23. stock — goods
  24. pitcher — a jug

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