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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: bark · spring · wave · ball · hand · arm · track · fine

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. spring — the season
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. spring — of water
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. ball — a great time
  11. fine — all right
  12. ball — a dance
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. hand — help
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. track — a path
  18. fine — high quality
  19. bark — to shout
  20. spring — a coil
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. track — a song
  23. hand — in cards
  24. track — to keep track

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