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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cold · mate · nail · stock · coach · bank · bark · wound

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. stock — shares
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. mate — to breed
  10. mate — a partner
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bank — for money
  15. stock — goods
  16. bank — of a river
  17. cold — not warm
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bark — to shout
  20. wound — an injury
  21. mate — a friend
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bank — for money

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