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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 124 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: coach · club · rash · row · bark · calf · pitcher · rush

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. rash — hasty
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. club — for golf
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. bark — to shout
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. club — a group
  11. row — a line
  12. rash — a series
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. row — to paddle
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. club — for dancing
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rash — on the skin
  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