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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: pitcher · tear · bark · wound · bowl · bat · stick · pop

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. pop — music
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bat — the animal
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bark — to shout
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. pop — soda
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. pop — to visit

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