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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: club · bark · net · squash · mate · band · row · bowl

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. mate — a friend
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. net — for catching
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. club — for golf
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. mate — to breed
  10. squash — the sport
  11. row — a line
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. squash — to crush
  14. net — in sport
  15. club — a group
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bark — to shout
  19. club — for dancing
  20. net — after costs
  21. band — a ring
  22. row — to paddle
  23. band — a music group
  24. mate — a partner

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