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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: wake · board · nail · fork · bark · swing · row · mark

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. mark — a grade
  6. swing — in golf
  7. mark — a trace
  8. board — to get on
  9. swing — music
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. board — a committee
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. swing — to play on
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. row — to paddle
  19. fork — in a road
  20. row — a line
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. wake — a trail
  24. fork — a garden tool

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