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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: wave · deal · bark · shower · swing · staff · stock · spring

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. deal — to handle
  4. stock — goods
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. staff — employees
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — in golf
  10. staff — a stick
  11. staff — employees
  12. spring — a coil
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. shower — rain
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. swing — to play on
  18. bark — to shout
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — of water
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. stock — shares
  24. wave — with your hand

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